


Immortals

by GoddessOfAries



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: Assault, Don't Have to Know Canon, F/F, Friends to Lovers, Kara Danvers Doesn't Have Powers, Lena Luthor Needs a Hug, Mafia AU, Major Violence, Protective Kara Danvers, Slow Burn, Strangers to Friends, Triggers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-28
Updated: 2021-01-22
Packaged: 2021-03-10 05:40:12
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 15
Words: 148,437
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27759283
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GoddessOfAries/pseuds/GoddessOfAries
Summary: Lena Luthor is the heir to her family’s legacy. Some would call that legacy a clan, others would call it one of the strongest mafia’s in National City’s history. Regardless of what this destiny was, Lena had to learn how to run the Immortals sooner rather than later. Her mother was growing old, and her brother was hungry for her spot as leader.To protect her daughter from any outside- and inside -threats, Lillian Luthor hires one of the most well-ranked body guard out there; Kara Danvers. Kara is nationally ranked, having worked for the Special Operations Forces, as well as protected numerous high end clients.What starts off as a professional relationship turns into a tight bond between the two. One could almost call it love. It’s not nearly as black and white as Kara wished it was, with many hands pulling Lena and Kara apart from each other. It’s a constant struggle that makes both women question if it’s really worth it, yet something keeps making them fight to reach the other.
Relationships: Kara Danvers/Lena Luthor
Comments: 132
Kudos: 480





	1. Chapter 1: Just Another Job

**Author's Note:**

> Hey everyone! Thank you for choosing to read this fanfic! I hope you guys enjoy the first chapter, and the others to come. I’ve been planning this story for a while, so I’m interested in seeing how it goes. Please note that I don’t know a whole ton about what exactly Special Forces/Operations do, so that’s probably not going to be super accurate… Still, I hope everyone can enjoy Immortals.
> 
> Have a good day/night!  
> -Aries

Music played over a speaker that echoed through the apartment. It was empty, with only a bed, couch, and dining table unpacked among the sea of boxes. It was 5am, the moon shining brightly through the window across Kara’s apartment. She had just gotten out of the shower, dancing to the music as she got dressed in her work clothing; a formal suit with a Kevlar vest under it, and a gun holster under the left arm. She looked sleek in her well fitted jacket and pants, adjusting the cuffs so they were perfect with one another. That was her brand; perfection. Not one thing should be out of place.

Kara had been hired by maybe the most questionable people in her entire career. She’d been all the way in London, working a job for a rich inventor who needed protection from some anarchists trying to prevent him from creating a machine that would help the British military stop them, when all of a sudden she got an offer from her agent.

She was being offered a long term job for a well-known mafia group based in National City; known as the Immortals. She didn’t know much about the job, other than she was to protect the leader’s daughter, heir to the family name. The Immortals were one of the most established mafia groups in National City, and possibly one of the top famous mafia’s in American history. 

Kara figured they rivaled the mafia in New York’s old days when it came to popularity and size. They ran everything in almost all of National City. They were also known for having lots of enemies, whether it be rival gangs or the NCPD. Cops and gang members never got along, unless the cop was dirty or the gang member was a snitch.

At first Kara wasn’t going to accept the offer. She didn’t like long term agreements. It meant that her clients could ‘forget’ about her full payments and bonuses. However, after thinking about it for a little while, Kara figured that maybe now would be a good time to settle down a bit. She’d been traveling for 2 years straight, going all over the world to serve and protect clients. Going back home, to America, might be the best way to go.

So, she accepted the offer, and now she was currently getting ready to officially meet her client. Not just Lillian Luthor, but the woman she was supposed to safeguard. Kara had yet to be told exactly who she was going to be protecting. All she knew is that it was Lillian Luthor’s daughter; even with how well-known the Immortals were Kara didn’t know everything about them.

It was around 6am by the time Kara was starting to leave her new apartment. She’d pulled her hair up into a tight bun, and was strapping a watch to her wrist as she exited the messy home. As soon as she stepped out into the hallway, a stoic façade washed over her. She no longer mumbled and hummed to the music she had turned off, strolling down to the elevator that would take her to the underground parking garage.

Kara walked to her car, a sleek tinted black sports car that was given to her as a thanks by her new client. She was to meet Lillian Luthor at her office building further into the city. She’d heard of the Immortals front; L-Corp… Officially it was a business that worked in the medical and science field. Unofficially, however, it was where most of the Immortals would report to when summoned.

The early morning traffic in the town almost made Kara late, but thankfully she’d planned on there being some sort of delay. By the time Kara got to the looming L-Corp building, entering the rather nice looking front lobby, she was right on time. The woman at the front desk smiled politely, asking for Kara’s name. “Ms. Danvers here to see Ms. Luthor,” Kara said in a business tone.

Instantly the woman’s face changed, realizing she wasn’t just someone who’d bought into the façade of L-Corp. “Right, of course. I’ll call for someone to come get you. If you’d like to sit,” the woman gestured to a small waiting area. Kara nodded, thanking her as she walked away.

Slight anxiety buzzed through Kara as she sat stiffly on the edge of the plush couch. Her clasped fingers slightly fiddled around as Kara stared down at the ground. She only sat there for maybe a minute before a large man in a suit much like Kara’s walked up to her. “Right this way, ma’am.”

Kara followed the security guard to an elevator, which took them up to the very top floor. It opened up to a small room with another receptionist sitting at a desk. When she looked up and saw the security guard, all she did was nod and look back down at what she was working on. No one seemed to be acknowledging what Kara was really there for.

The two guards walked throughout the waiting area and through two large double oak doors. The doors opened up to a large office that obviously belonged to Lillian Luthor. A woman who was perhaps in her early 50’s sat at an overly large desk, talking to some man who looked to be a lawyer. Ms. Luthor reminded Kara of a strict catholic school teacher. Her light brown hair was pulled into a tight up-do, showing off her long neck and broad jaw. She wore a pure white pants suit and blazer, sitting straight up in her tall seat. If Kara had to be honest, Lillian wasn’t nearly as intimidating as she thought she was going to be.

“Oh, good, you’re right on time. Sit down.” Lillian had only glanced at Kara before turning to the lawyer. “So you’re telling me we can’t appeal the conviction? He’s stuck in there?” Lillian was frowning deeply, her lawyer visibly shrinking in his seat. “I’m afraid not… The judge denied it, saying the overwhelming evidence against your son would just be used to prove he was guilty all over again. He’s going to have to serve out his sentence.”

That obviously wasn’t the answer Lillian wanted. Her face turned red, and the slightly sagging skin on her throat quivered vaguely. “Get out. You’re useless to me if you can’t help Lex get out of prison.” The lawyer quickly nodded, gathering his items sheepishly. Lillian didn’t even acknowledge Kara until the man was completely out of the room, the door shut tightly behind him. It was just Kara, Lillian, and the security guard standing in awkward silence.

“Now… You must be the woman I’m hiring for my daughter.” Lillian was slowly regaining her composure, her face returning to a normal shade of pink. Kara nodded, “Yes ma’am. I was told you asked for me specifically, out of the list of guards you were given.” Lillian curtly nodded, glancing down at what Kara assumed was the mentioned list. “Your records are impressive. Special Forces for seven years- skipping over the 14-year minimum requirement somehow –and a professional body guard for three years. You’ve never once lost a client, I’ve heard. Is that true?”

“It is, ma’am. I’ve been hired to protect countless clients, although it’s never been more than a few months. My agent didn’t tell me exactly how long our contract was; could you explain to me how long you’re going to be in need of my services?” Kara shifted stiffly in her seat, feeling uncomfortable under Lillian’s gaze. “Until either you fail at your job, or me or my daughter get rid of you.”

Kara tried to not show the shock, nor disdain towards Lillian’s words. She didn’t realize how long the Luthor’s needed her, and the way Lillian talked about her like she was trash angered Kara. She felt her hands clench into fists, but her face remained unchanging. “I hope this time period won’t be a problem… I’d be very disappointed otherwise.” Lillian’s eyes hardened, boring into Kara’s blue ones. Kara held her ground. For the second time Kara almost denied the contract; she didn’t want to be tied down to one client- especially if they were going to be so blatantly rude to her.

Something make Kara nod, her agreement causing Lillian’s face to soften into a smile. “Perfect! Then, shall we go meet Lena?” Lillian didn’t even wait for Kara to agree. She stood from her desk, walking out from around it. Kara also stood, allowing Lillian to go ahead of her, following her out of the office.

They went back into the elevator that Kara and the unnamed guard came up in, going down only one floor, the doors opening up to a room full of modern office cubicles. It almost reminded Kara of a police officer bullpen the way it was set up. Along the walls were glass conference rooms, but all along the left wall was solid, with two mahogany doors much like Lillian’s office in the center.

Lillian led Kara towards the doors, chatting as she walked. “We’ll have you sign all the paperwork in a little while; You can set your own price for your services, whatever you’d like. You’ve already received the apartment we got for you, correct?” Lillian just barely glanced at Kara, who silently nodded. She didn’t like Lillian very much, but that didn’t matter considering she wasn’t her proper client.

The group walked straight past a woman who sat at a desk right outside of the double doors, Lillian not even paying any attention to her as she looked up from her work expectantly. Ms. Luthor pushed the doors open haughtily, strolling inside of the office. It was much like Lillian’s office in decoration, but at least half its size. It had a beautiful view, with glass walls and a large balcony.

Kara and Lillian glanced around the office, both of them quickly coming to the conclusion that it was completely empty. Kara’s client- Lillian called her Lena –was nowhere to be seen. Kara could see the irritation building in Lillian’s face. She obviously wasn’t a patient woman. The mafia boss turned around and stormed over to the receptionist’s desk, slamming her hands down on the raised surface. “Where is my daughter?” Lillian growled in a voice that was obviously holding back anger. The receptionist- her name plaque said Jessica Hoang –look absolutely terrified.

“She… Uh… She’s out… Uhm… Out to a meeting,” the young woman stuttered. Lillian’s face only reddened more. “What meeting? Where?!” Her hands clenched into fists. Luckily she didn’t have eyes on the back of her head to see Kara’s disapproving frown. She heavily disliked people who screamed at the ones helping them.

“She went to breakfast with James, ma’am.” Jessica was visibly shaking, looking as if she was about to cry. Lillian sneered at the name James. “That damned boy toy of hers,” she mumbled under her breath. “Where is she exactly,” Lillian asked with a huff. “Her schedule lists The Nightingale.”

Lillian finally let Jessica off the hook, turning to Kara. “I don’t have time to chase down my daughter… I’ll send Gerrard with you to go meet her. She has a lot of work she should be doing.” Kara wanted to ask what the last part meant; was Kara supposed to persuade Lena to come back to work, or not?

The anger in Lillian’s face made her think twice. Instead, she just nodded and looked to Gerrard, who was standing slightly in back of her. “Right this way, Danvers,” Gerrard instructed, turning and leading the way back to the elevator. Lillian didn’t follow them, instead going off to talk to someone at one of the desks.

Gerrard was a man of little words, silently standing with his hands crossed in front of him. He was at least 6 foot 8 inches tall, towering over Kara’s 6 foot even height. The radius of his bicep was probably as thick as Kara’s entire head, the muscles bulging menacingly. Although Kara was also heavily muscled, her shoulders rather broad in her fitted suit jacket, she wasn’t nearly as big as Gerrard.

The elevator took them all the way down to the main floor, Gerrard leading Kara out a side door, to a black SUV that had black tinted windows. “Who’s James?” Kara finally asked as she slid into the passenger seat of the car. “James Olsen, a gossip newsletter reporter for the Capitol News, and Lena’s unofficial boyfriend. Their relationship is more friends with benefits, according to Ms. Lena.”

Kara frowned, silently commenting to herself that boyfriends- or friends with benefits –never make a job easier. They try to pretend like they’re helping Kara protect her client, but as soon as something doesn’t go their way Kara find herself protecting her client from the boyfriend. Regardless, it’s not like she could tell Lena Luthor to break up with her ‘boy toy’- as her mother put it -just to make her job easier. She’d just have to adapt and work with what she was given.

The rest of the drive to The Nightingale was silent between Kara and Gerrard. The city was massive, and still very busy despite the fact that rush hour was well over. It took longer than Kara expected to get to Lena’s location; a quiet looking night club that only had a few cars in the small parking lot, Gerrard stopping their ride on the side of the street.

The two guards got out of the car, strolling across the street to reach The Nightingale. “What happened to Ms. Lena’s previous body guard?” Kara asked as she walked next to Gerrard. The taller man looked down at her, his stern face unchanging. “He died. Shot up during a drive-by protecting your new employer.” That didn’t surprise Kara; Her line of work was dangerous. Unless Kara was fired or paralyzed from some sort of accident, she had always assumed her death was the only reason she’d no longer be able to work as a body guard.

There was a bouncer standing outside The Nightingale, but as soon as he saw Gerrard he stepped aside, nodding to him. He side-eyed Kara, staying silent as they passed by. Kara figured he was probably a part of the Immortals and knew Gerrard. The Nightingale looked like a very high end night club, with a large dance floor and 360 bar. There were tall stages placed all around with dancing poles in the center. Currently, however, it was completely dead.

Kara could hear a man talking above her, looking up to see that there was a second floor catwalk that extended all along the walls of the bar and seemed to be the VIP lounging area. Currently it was being used to serve breakfast to the illusive Lena Luthor and James Olsen. Gerrard silently led the way upstairs, Kara trotting along in back of him.

Kara could hear Lena before she saw her, Gerrard blocking her view with his broad torso. “Oh, look, my mother sent a baby sitter,” she sighed, referring to Gerrard. Kara stepped out from behind the taller guard to see what was going on, her eyes locking on her new client.

Raven hair, crimson lipstick, and bright green eyes that pierced straight into Kara’s soul. A chill ran straight up Kara’s spine as she held eye contact with Lena Luthor. Without even trying Lena practically radiated authority, unlike her mother who had to demand it with harsh words and temper tantrums. Just being around Lena made Kara want to stop and listen to every word she had to say.

“Hm… And who’s this?” Lena raised an eyebrow, a vaguely shocked and curious look in her eyes. Her face, however, split into a mischievous smile. “I’m Kara Danvers, ma’am. Your mother hired me to be head of your protective unit… ‘Baby sitter’, as you put it.” Kara couldn’t help but add the last part to her professional introduction. Lena laughed at the testing joke, her giggle making Kara instinctively smirk. She quickly wiped the emotion off her face, trying to keep her professional barrier up.

Kara found herself not wanting to look away from Lena, her aura intriguing. Reluctantly, her eyes shifted over to the other figure sitting at the table. A tall African American man in a rumpled looking suit sat with an almost bored look on his face. “James Olsen, I presume,” Kara curtly nodded to James, who scoffed. 

“Oh, She’s a good one, Lena… Looking up your friends before she even knows you’re with them.” Kara glanced to Gerrard, who was blankly looking at the table. She knew James was going to be the type to pose a problem later on in her career.

“Just doing my job,” Kara said, giving no other explanation. She wasn’t used to talking so much with her clients, although Kara figured she’d be working long enough with Lena that she might eventually become comfortable. 

Lena hummed softly in amusement, leaning forward to rest her chin on a propped up hand. “I assume you’ve already met my mother, then. Did she send you down here to get me?” Lena slightly tilted her head.

“She asked me to come down here and meet you, yes. Whether or not you go back to L-Corp is up to you.” It wasn’t Kara’s job to tell her client what to do. Lena looked pleased with Kara’s answer. Her green eyes finally shifted off of Kara, looking to Gerrard. 

“You don’t have to stick around, Gerrard. I’ve got my new body guard with me, I’ll be safe.” The taller guard nodded, silently turning and walking away. Kara quietly wondered how she was going to get back to L-Corp, unsure if Lena was going to let her tag along in whatever vehicle she brought with her.

“Come sit down… Are you hungry?” Lena gestured to a spare chair at the end of the table. In the corner of Kara’s eye, she saw James frown, but she said nothing about it. “I’ve already eaten, thank you.” Kara stiffly grabbed the offered chair and sat down, scooting a little ways away from the two sitting at the table. “I’m sorry, what did you say your name was?” James asked, taking a sip of what looked to be a mixed cocktail. “Danvers… Kara Danvers.”

Lena seemed amused by something, smirking as she took a bite of her breakfast. “So, what did you do before you became a glorified baby sitter?” Lena asked playfully. Kara felt like it was almost too playful, as if Lena was forcing herself to be cocky in front of her smug friend.

“I was in the army for a few years. Nothing else before that, really.” Kara gave a small shrug. She didn’t know these people well enough to open up to them, let alone about sensitive information. Lena didn’t look satisfied with the answer, but she didn’t push.

James started to talk to Lena about some story that Kara didn’t bother following along with. Instead Kara started to glance around The Nightingale. The building was very large, with expensive hanging lights and multiple doors that Kara assumed led off to private rooms, and maybe even bathrooms. Kara wasn’t entirely paying attention to her employer’s conversation, looking down at the dance floor multiple feet below them. Her legs were crossed, foot bouncing subconsciously in the air.

“You know we’re alone here? You don’t have to do your job right now. You’re allowed to relax,” Lena’s voice broke through Kara’s train of thought. Kara looked to the beautiful woman diagonally in front of her, eyebrows furrowing. Lena seemed like she was rather callow, a constant mischievous look on her face; Like she was constantly planning on how to out think you. 

Kara shook her head at Lena’s suggestion. “I’ve learned long ago that my job is never over; even when my clients’ are alone,” She replied simply, moving to cross her arms. Lena frowned slightly at the decline, obviously not liking Kara’s answer. Kara half expected her to start to throw a fit- this wasn’t the first time Kara had to serve a spoiled client –but was surprised to see that she let the subject go, turning back to look at James.

The two continued onto their conversation for quite a while. Kara continued to silently sit there, glancing around the club every so often. It was early afternoon by the time someone other than The Nightingale workers walked into the facility. They looked like young adults just looking for a morning drink, so Kara only gave them a little bit of her attention.

As she waited for Lena and James to get tired of their conversation, Kara felt her phone buzz. She reached into her jacket, pulling out her work phone. There was a text on the screen from an unknown number.

_’Ms. Luthor requests that her daughter be back at L-Corp before noon. –Gerrard’_

Kara put her phone back into her inside jacket pocket, looking up to see that Lena was looking at her. “Are you really that bored with our conversation?” Lena asked with a smirk. “What? I wasn’t even… Your mother requests that you be back at L-Corp before noon,” Kara replied in a professional tone. 

Lena frowned for a split second before quickly changing her expression back to her usual smirk. James didn’t seem to notice the unhappy look, only paying attention to his phone. “Fine… If she insists… James, darling, I’ll see you soon?”

James looked up from his phone, smiling and nodding. Lena gathered her purse and other items, getting up from the table. Kara instantly stood with her, not bothering to nod to James who wasn’t even looking at her, moving to lead her client out of the club. Kara had been taught from day one to always walk in front of whoever she was escorting in order to protect them properly. “Do you have a car we can take, ma’am?”

Lena feigned shock. “You mean you didn’t call a car yet?” Kara stiffened, unaware that she was supposed to do anything of the sorts. When Lena’s face split into a shit eating grin, Kara realized her client was playing with her. “I’m just kidding- You really need to take that stick out of your ass. You’ll have more fun that way… I’m parked right down the street, over there.” Lena gestured to Kara’s right.

“Really, though, why don’t you relax? My other guards at least smiled at me,” Lena questioned as Kara started to guide her forward. “Because the moment I let my guard down, you could get hurt.” Kara paused, silently wondering if she should add, ‘plus you’ve yet to say anything funny’. She decided to keep it to herself, mentally grinning at her own joke. Her face externally remained stoic.

Lena didn’t say anything else until they reached an expensive looking Ferrari. It was crimson red, just like Lena’s lipstick. “Get in, I’ll drive us to L-Corp,” Lena instructed. Kara looked at her with a frown. Normally she’d be the one to drive her clients; she was trained to get away from anyone trying to trail them, after all. Lena didn’t even pay attention to her displeasure, sliding into the low driver’s seat. With a sigh, Kara walked around the car to sit in the passenger side of the car.

Kara half expected Lena to start speeding through the streets with the way she was constantly trying to get a rouse out of her. However, Lena smoothly pulled out onto the road and drove just like everyone else around her. When she noticed Kara’s vaguely quizzical look, she said, “I don’t want to risk totaling my car; this thing is my baby, I love this Ferrari.”

Lena didn’t go straight back to L-Corp, Kara noticed. She drove around some back streets, silently driving through the city. Kara sat stiffly in the small car, unsure of how in the world she was going to get through this job for the rest of her career.

Eventually, Lena pulled up to the large office building. It was still a looming figure that sent an unpleasant chill up Kara’s spine. Kara escorted Lena into the building, listening to her quiet directions on where to go. As they got onto an empty elevator, Kara made sure to put Lena in back of her, standing with her hand grasping her wrist in front of the doors. Lena was texting on her phone, pausing only to comment on Kara’s stature. “You know you don’t have to be so uptight- Or is that part of your ‘relaxing means death’ philosophy?”

Kara simply turned to slowly look at Lena, her eyebrow silently raising. Internally she had a whole rambling speech about why she needed to be so ‘uptight’, but she refused say it. So instead she just turned back to face the front of the elevator, staring at the floor numbers beeping above them. They went up to the top floor; Lillian’s floor.

When they entered Lillian’s office, she was on the phone, talking aggressively to someone about her son, Lex, and how he wasn’t going to be stuck in prison, “-If I have anything to say about it!” Lillian didn’t end the phone conversation even after Lena went and sat down, Kara moving to stand in the back of the room silently.

It took multiple minutes before Lillian finally hung up the phone, sighing heavily and pinching the bridge of her nose. “These damn lawyers not doing anything to help your brother,” Lillian huffed. 

Lena sat casually in her seat, legs crossed and arms relaxing on the armrests. “Well I mean he was convicted of attempted murder, and assaulting a police officer… Also the fact that he ran from the cops didn’t help his case.” Lena shrugged, obviously not caring about her brother.

Lillian sighed dramatically again, leaning back in her tall desk chair. “I told him not to go to Nevada… That business deal had ‘scam’ written all over it. I knew he was going to do something stupid, and we have no power over in that state… I should have tried harder to keep him here.” 

Kara silently furrowed her eyebrows listening to the conversation. Never had she worked for such openly criminal people. It’d never been her business to ask what her clients did, although it did bother her to work for some obviously corrupt people. At the start of her career, not just as a body guard but also in the military, Kara had always tried to work for those who she perceived as the ‘good guys’.

She quickly figured out that there really wasn’t such a thing anymore. Everyone has some sort of negative past, present, or future. At this point she no longer bothered to try and stay working for the people with the moral high ground. She’d go broke and homeless if that’s how she chose her employers.

“It’s not the end of the world, mother. He’ll get out eventually- As long as he’s good, that is.” Lena’s voice didn’t exactly convey a caring tone, and Kara assumed there was something negative between the siblings. Lillian didn’t seem to fully listen, or maybe she didn’t even care about Lena’s lack of disgruntlement over her brother’s imprisonment.

Lillian sighed dramatically once more, standing and going over to a small liquor stand, pouring two glasses of an amber liquid Kara assumed was bourbon. She gave one to Lena while she sipped the other, sitting back down. “Anyways, that’s not why I called you back here… How’s your new bodyguard?” Lillian gestured to Kara, talking as if she wasn’t there.

Lena’s back was turned to her, but Kara could see her head tilt in her direction ever so slightly. “She’s… She’ll work just fine, as long as she finds some sense of humor within the next few weeks.” Lillian hummed into her glass of liquor. “Good, then she’ll go with you to Italy tomorrow. Do you remember what you need to do there?”

“Of course; Find some sort of accord with the Bianchi family, so that our business deal works for both them and us.” Lena casually crossed her long legs again, leaning an arm across the back of her chair, her hand out of sight of her mother. Lillian nodded in approval. “It’s good to know you’re finally listening. Don’t miss your flight, and give me updates on how things are going.” 

Lena’s hidden hand clenched into a fist behind the chair, Kara suddenly realizing that she was angry… What was making her so upset? Was it something her mother said? Or maybe it was that her mother cared only about her brother, and Lena felt excluded? Kara had no idea, her curiosity scratching inside her, begging for the mystery to be solved. Kara knew better, however, keeping her mouth tightly closed.

“You can go back to work now- but stay in the building. I don’t need you to be off playing around with James right now.” With a dismissive wave, Lillian turned to her own work. Kara could now see how tense Lena was, and the arrogant dismissal made her even more angry. She didn’t say anything, surprisingly, getting up and walking out. As she passed Kara, she beckoned her along, Kara quickly turning and following her.

Lena was silent until the elevator doors closed, her face almost as stoic as Kara’s. “I’ll have Jessica give you the details for tomorrow, so you have an idea as to what’s going on. Once you finish that you’re free to go home for the day.” Kara couldn’t hide her confusion. She was allowed to leave? “Your mother mentioned that I still have some paperwork to fill out.”

For a second Kara thought Lena was going to burst out; a muscle in her jaw twitching as she clenched her teeth. Instead, she just took a deep breath, closing her eyes. “I’ll have Jessica also get you your paperwork, then…” Kara nodded in understanding. 

It seemed that Lena didn’t actually get along with her mother- although that didn’t surprise Kara; who would be able to get along with such a rude woman? For a moment Kara actually felt bad for her new employer, realizing that it must not be nearly as easy being related to Lillian as it seemed. Lex was obviously the favorite child, from what Kara could discern. Lillian was putting in quite an effort in getting him out of prison.

Once the elevator doors opened, Lena led the way back to her office. She paused at Jessica’s desk, asking her for the paperwork for the Italy trip, as well as what Kara needed. She then turned to Kara, “You can use any one of these unused desks to read and fill out your stuff… I’ll see you tomorrow, Ms. Danvers.” Before Kara could even respond, Lena turned and strode into her office, tightly shutting the door.

Kara took the papers once Jessica printed them all out, strolling over to an empty desk to read everything. The overview of the Italy trip was very straightforward; Lena and a couple of other ‘officers’ from the Immortals were going to Italy to speak with the Bianchi family about something that wasn’t described. 

The flight times and names, as well as the hotels and other buildings they were going to were all listed, giving Kara a good sense of what to anticipate. It seemed that the other Immortals were already at Italy, and waiting on Lena’s arrival.

After Kara took another look through the trip overview, she then took some time to fill out the contract and other items for her new employment. That took quite a bit of time, and was incredibly tedious. The entire time Kara worked, she didn’t once see Lena leave her office. Jessica seemed to go in and out every once and a while, but no one else.

Eventually everything was filled out, and Kara had no reason to stay at L-Corp; Lena said she was free to leave, after all. Kara gave Jessica the contract, politely thanking her before she left. As Kara waited for the elevator doors to open, she looked at the large double doors of Lena Luthors office. That was the last thing she saw before the grey steel doors opened, stepping in so she could no longer see the powerful woman’s office.

As Kara drove back to her apartment she softly chewed her lip in thought. Today was possibly one of the most unusual days of her life, and yet she knew that it was probably only going to get weirder. Lena was a very eccentric person, it seemed. And yet Kara felt like she didn’t even know Lena what-so-ever. She came off as an arrogant, spoiled woman, but seeing her anger at her mother- and her mother favoritism towards her brother -made Kara think differently.

Could her annoyance have been anger over being told what to do? No- someone wouldn’t bother hiding their vexation over their authority issues -most people tended to be forth coming about that. So what made Lena so upset, and why did she have to hide that anger?

Kara figured it was none of her business, even if her interest was piqued. She’d just have to settle with not ever knowing. So instead, Kara tried to take her mind off of Lena Luthor and her mysterious emotions by unpacking her apartment. There were still mountains of boxes that Kara had to begrudgingly go through.

Despite her cleanly outward appearance, Kara Danvers was in fact quite a messy person. “An organized mess,” as Kara would normally describe it to her friends and family. Everything had a general place to go around the apartment, but nothing was ever exact. 

For example, Kara had a lot of books that could easily be organized onto her two large bookshelves. Instead, however, she only put about 3/4 ‘s of the books on the shelves before stacking the rest on a small night stand she had put between the two shelves.

Kara did this for about three hours before getting tired of unpacking. So instead, she tried to find someone to be social with. Kara had a few friends who lived close to National City, and considering it was only midafternoon, she figured they could find some place to meet. Kara texted a few of those friends to see if they were busy. Most of them were, except for one of Kara’s closest friend.

Winn Scott had agreed to meet Kara for an early dinner at a restaurant he suggested. The two of them hadn’t seen each other for over two years. Work had been keeping them apart; Kara had been in Europe for so long, and Winn was very busy at his blogging job. Thankfully today was one of his few nights off.

Kara got ready, dressing in a very casual sweater and jeans. She took out her itchy contacts, replacing them with black framed glasses that made her look at least 6 years younger. She also took her hair down, letting the golden curls fall down around her shoulders.

Once it was time to meet Winn, Kara gave her slightly less box-filled apartment a once over before closing the door firmly. She then drove to the agreed upon restaurant, arriving a few minutes early. Kara played on her phone until she heard a warm, familiar voice call out to her. “Kara? Oh wow, it’s so good to see you!” Kara looked up, a smile quickly pulling at her lips as she saw the lanky figure of Winn.

The two of them hugged tightly straight away, greeting each other cheerfully. It was incredibly relaxing being able to be herself around another person, the stress Kara had been holding in her shoulders melting away as soon as Winn hugged her. It was always hard keeping her emotions in check when she was at work. It felt good to not only smile and laugh, but also to be addressed like an actual human being.

The two went into the restaurant, being escorted to the table. They ordered some quick drinks before returning to their conversation. “It’s been so long! How have you been?” Winn asked with a big smile; He was always smiling. Kara figured Winn was probably one of the most cheerful people she knew.

“Yeah, over 2 years. It’s been alright; just working yaknow? I’ve been traveling so much that it’s really hard to keep up with everyone back in the states.” Kara grinned as she spoke, her foot happily bouncing in the air as she crossed her legs. “Does everyone know you’re back? Have you spoken to Alex recently?” The mention of Kara’s adoptive sister made her easy grin falter for a moment.

The last time Kara had spoken to Alex was almost a year ago; they had gotten into a big fight about Kara’s work. Alex disagreed with some of the people her sister was working for. Kara tried to explain that there was no possible way to keep her hands clean in her job but Alex refused to listen. In her mind it was very black and white and what Kara was doing was wrong.

“Uhm, no, I haven’t spoken to Alex very much recently. Though I’m sure she knows I’m back; I told my family I was returning to the states a few weeks ago. I actually saw my mom for a few days before coming into National City.” Winn nodded in understanding. He had heard about Kara and Alex’s fallout, and knew better than to say anything about it. 

“So you’re working for a high end client then, huh?” Kara wasn’t comfortable going into a whole lot of detail, so she just gave a vague answer. “Yeah, they’re pretty big. I’m actually going to be working with them completely. There’s no end date.”

Winn seemed surprised by this. It had always been assumed with Kara’s job that she’d only work with someone between a few weeks to a few months before switching to another job. “They asked for me personally, which is why I took the offer,” Kara explained a little bit more. “Still, though, that’s a lot,” Winn exclaimed. Kara scoffed, giving Winn a ‘if only you knew’ look.

“So what have you been up to? Still working for that online blog?” Kara glanced at the menu as she listened to Winn. “I actually created my own company. ‘Insider Observer’ is the name of it. We cover come pretty big stories. Recently we’ve been covering the Washington debates.” Kara’s eyes widened; She’d heard of the Insider Observer. She’d read a few of their articles, and figured they weren’t half bad.

“I had no idea that was your company! No wonder the articles are always so entertaining. You guys are really well informed.” Winn smiled, trying to hide his flattered look. “I’ve got some pretty good sources,” he chuckled.

The two old friends continued to talk, ordering their dinner between conversations. The meal wasn’t bad at all, Kara hungrily scarfing hers down. “Do you even taste your food when you eat it?” Winn asked with an amused laugh, watching Kara scrape the last bits of sauce off her plate with a spoon. “Of course I do! And I enjoy every last bite, thank you very much… I’m just always so hungry that I can’t slow myself down.” Kara blushed a little, also laughing along with Winn.

The conversation led elsewhere, Winn talking about a funny encounter with an angry old lady at a bakery when the waitress came over with a martini glass, setting it in front of Kara. The two friends paused in confusion, Kara’s eyebrows furrowing at the random drink. “Uh, I’m sorry, but I didn’t order this?” Kara looked up to the waitress, who politely smiled.

“That gentleman over there asked me to give this to you,” The waitress explained, turning and pointing off towards another table. Kara followed where she was gesturing, her gaze landing on the grinning face of James Olsen. For a few moments Kara felt as if her secret identity had been found out; It was very rare that a client or their friends saw her in such a casual setting. “Excuse me, Winn. I’ll be right back.”

Kara stood, grabbing the martini and walking over to James, who was sitting with a random woman. She nodded politely to the woman as she set down the martini glass on the table, her stoic façade quickly building up walls around Kara. “Good evening, Ms. Danvers,” James said, still grinning even as he glanced down at the drink. “Evening. I didn’t expect to see you here.” Kara defaulted into a wide stance, her hands clasping behind her back. “I’m here with a friend, Ashley... It’s nice to see you in such casual clothing.”

Kara glanced from the woman, Ashley, back to James. “Ms. Luthor told me I could have the rest of the day off, so I decided to go see an old friend… Thank you for the drink; although I’m driving home, and I don’t like to have alcohol in my system when I’m behind the wheel.” James nodded in understanding. “Don’t worry about it, the drink was just an offering; you don’t have to accept it.” There was a pause where Kara could tell James wanted to say something else, so she remained silent.

“Speaking of Lena; Do you have any idea what’s up with her? She told me she’d be at The Nightingale tonight, but canceled last second.” Kara raised an eyebrow. She silently wondered why James would talk about another woman while he was already spending time with Ashely- she considered that to be very rude –but it was also odd that James assumed Kara knew anything about Lena and her personal life.

“Unfortunately I have no clue. I’ve known Ms. Luthor for less than 24 hours, so I don’t know her nightly routine.” Kara kept her tone professional, which seemed to amuse James. His grin grew into a large smile, finally turning to look back at the silent Ashley. “Well, regardless, it was nice seeing you. Enjoy your night.”

Kara didn’t exactly know how to reply to the casual dismissal, so she simply turned and walked back to her table. Winn looked confused as she sat down. “A friend of my clients,” Kara answered his curious look simply. “Your client must be pretty big if they’re friends with James Olsen.” Kara raised her eyebrow in surprised confusion. She assumed James Olsen was popular somehow, but the fact that Winn knew his name simply by his face was odd.

“He’s the top reporter for Capitol News… Basically the radical black sheep of the news industry.” Winn glanced back at James, who didn’t even bother acknowledging Kara and Winn’s presents anymore. “What do they write about that gives them such a reputation?” Kara asked, leaning back in her seat. “Think of it this way; If the Capitol News was a lawyer, they’d be the ones defending the murder just because they were paid a high enough price.”

That sounded about right in Kara’s mind. She’d hardly even spoken to James and already assumed he was a shady guy. Her gut instinct was to worry about Lena’s safety if things were to ever go bad between the two of them. He was a security hazard, and made Kara uneasy.

Winn and Kara spoke for another half hour before Kara had to call it a night. She had to go back to her new apartment and get packed for this sudden trip to Italy. It was kind of ironic that Kara took this job to return to the states, but not even a full day in and she was already planning on going back to Europe.

The two friends paid for their meal and said goodbye in the parking lot before Kara drove back home. She pulled out one of her suit cases- which she actually hadn’t had the chance to put away properly –filling it with a few days’ worth of clothing and toiletries. Kara put the bag next to her front door, along with her passport and other required traveling items before getting ready to sleep for the night.

As Kara laid in bed, staring up at the unfamiliar ceiling of her apartment, her mind wandered back to her new employer. Why did she decide to cancel on James tonight? Kara could only assume it had something to do with Lillian. At first Kara wondered if her mother forbade Lena from going out tonight, due to skipping her work for most of the morning. Lena was an adult, however, and probably wouldn’t have listened to her mother regardless.

Kara eventually started to drift off to sleep, her mind still thinking about the odd Lena Luthor. She knew very little about her boss, and despite Kara’s hesitation to take on this job, she was rather interested in seeing where it went. It would- at the very least –be one of the most adventurous things she’s done in all her life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I changed a few things about the characters (Height and age) to fit the story better, but otherwise I’m trying my best to stay true to the characters…. Aside from James. I know he’s not a bad guy in the series, but in both my fanfiction’s I’ve written him as a bad person.... Idk why, lmao.  
> Regardless, thanks to those who reached the end of this chapter! I hope to update soon.
> 
> :)  
> -Aries


	2. Chapter 2: Lupo Vestito da Pecora

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lena and Kara get to know each other as Lena does some work in Rome, Italy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for all the support on the first chapter, everyone! I'm happy to see a few familiar user names in the comments <3.  
> I'll be keeping the chapters kinda short, just so I can update a little more easily (Long chapters are really exhausting to write, I apologize).
> 
> Enjoy!  
> -Aries
> 
> p.s. Lupo Vestito da Pecora means Wolf in Sheep's Clothing in Italian. It's kinda referring to how Lena seems rather innocent until she shows her true power. And it's in Italian because... Ya know... They're in Italy, lmao.

Kara waited patiently outside of Lena’s office, her hands crossed stiffly in front of her. She had gotten to L-Corp, expecting her new boss to be packed and ready to leave. Instead, however, Kara had to go all the way up to her office and ask her receptionist to call on Lena. Lena replied over the phone that she would be ready shortly; she just had a few last minute things to do. That was over an hour ago.

With an irritated sigh, Kara checked her wrist watch for what felt like the hundredth time. Her finger tapped against her leg impatiently as she dropped her hands to her side. If they waited any longer they would miss their flight entirely. Kara eventually moved from the empty desk she was leaning against to talk to Jessica once more. “Can you call her again? Remind her that she has a plane to catch?” Kara knew this wasn’t Jessica’s fault, so she tried to keep her voice calm as she spoke to her.

Jessica looked at the phone on her desk with slight fear and reluctance in her eyes. “I understand you guys have somewhere to be, but last time I called her twice in a row about something she threatened to fire me… She’s a very busy woman, and any distraction completely ruins her concentration.” Kara raised her eyebrow, her gaze moving to the menacing double doors.

“She can find her concentration again on the plane to Italy; It’s a 13-hour flight.” Kara took a deep breath, trying to find the courage to stand up to her superiors. She’d done it before, and she could do it again. Kara confidently walked up to the double doors, opening them just as Jessica called out, “No- wait!”

Lena looked up from her computer screen, a mild look of surprise on her face to see someone standing in her doorway. Kara froze halfway through the door when she noticed that Lena was wearing grey framed browline glasses, her hair down rather messily around her, and was in the same exact clothes she wore the day before. Kara’s first though that popped into her head was _’cute’_

In one swift motion Lena tore her glasses off, her look of surprise being replaced with embarrassed anger. “Out! Now!” She called in a demanding tone, pointing back towards the outside offices. Kara was stepping backwards, closing the double doors before she even process what she was doing. 

As soon as the doors were firmly closed she turned and looked at Jessica with wide eyes. That was not at all what Kara was expecting. “…I told you?” Jess said, mirroring Kara’s shocked look. Kara awkwardly moved to stand back where she had been standing for the past hour, tensely crossing her wrists in front of her again.

Five minutes passed before the double doors opened again, Lena confidently walking out. She’d changed her outfit, put in contacts, and pulled her hair into a tight bun. She didn’t even glance at Kara, walking right past her to the elevator. Kara gave one last surprised glance to Jessica before quickly moving to follow her boss.

The ride down to the ground floor was incredibly awkward as the two women stood in complete silence. Kara wanted to say something; to apologize for barging in on Lena, even though she was making them late. Kara felt like it was best to stay silent, however. Something told her that addressing the situation right now would only make it worse.

The two women exited the elevator as soon as the doors opened- Kara in front of Lena as always –walking out to the car that had been waiting with Lena and Kara’s bags the entire time. Kara paused to open the door, allowing Lena in the car before her. The ride to the airport was mostly silent, only broken when Lena answered a phone call from someone on her management team by the sounds of it.

When the car got to the airport, and their bags were dropped off at the loading area, Kara guided Lena through the airport and onto the plane. It was a mirical that they had made it in time. Their tickets said first class, and Kara was surprised to see that Lena had actually her a seat next to her; normally she’d be seated a few rows away, or in business class. 

Kara wondered if the Immortals didn’t have their own private jet. If they did, why weren’t they using it now. Was it already being used? Or maybe it was a small plane that couldn’t do cross-country trips? She figured it didn’t matter now, considering they were on a commercial flight, private plane or not.

As they waited for the plane to take off, Lena silently pulled a file out of her carry on that she’d set by her feet, silently reading it. Kara, who was sitting in the aisle seat, stiffly crossed her legs and pulled out her phone to turn it off. She also brought some items to occupy herself during the 13-hour flight, but Kara never liked to relax straight away.

Kara was just about to accept that there was going to be a very awkward silence between the two of them when suddenly Lena spoke. “I heard James saw you outside of work yesterday.” She didn’t look up from her files. Kara awkwardly nodded, not expecting the sudden exhumation of a topic she’d buried in the back of her mind, before realizing that Lena couldn’t see her nod of agreement. “Uh, yeah… I was out with a friend,” Kara answered stiffly.

Finally, Lena looked up from her reading, making eye contact with Kara. “I told him not to bother you again. You seem like a very private person, and I don’t want to make you uncomfortable.” Kara couldn’t hide the confusion on her face. This was a complete 180 from the Lena Luthor she’d met yesterday. There were no goading questions, no playful smirks or mischievous grins; She was being mature, and considerate… Caring, almost.

“I’m private with strangers, yes… I appreciate that, thank you.” For some reason Kara felt herself relax slightly. She felt like this side of Lena was rare to see, much like what Kara saw earlier in her office. It seemed she wasn’t the spoiled, selfish brat she came off to be in The Nightingale. Could it have been that she was trying to match James’ personality? In reality Lena Luthor was actually a kind, hard working woman who actually cared about the people- even strangers –around her.

Kara decided that now, with the more relaxed atmosphere, she could finally apologize to Lena for intruding on her. “I should have knocked earlier; I apologize for that.” Kara swallowed heavily, trying to see if there was any negative emotion on Lena’s face. There was none; in fact, Lena actually smiled and chuckled. Although she did blush slightly in embarrassment.

“It’s alright, I understand that my lack of time keeping was about to make us miss the flight. I just got very caught up in my work is all.” So her messy look earlier- with the glasses, rumpled hair and same clothing as the day before –was because she had been working through the night? Lena seemed to actually care about her business. Not the criminal side of it, but what L-Corp actually did for the world. Kara found that odd, considering most mafias didn’t put nearly as much effort in running their business like an actual business.

Kara let the short conversation die out, her attention shifting to her small carry on, which contained a collection of books. She didn’t properly get into the book until the plane took off, however, keeping an eye out for the people who were boarding. She didn’t expect anyone to harm them on the plane, but last time she didn’t pay full attention to her surroundings her client was almost attacked.

For the most part Kara and Lena were silent as they read their own things. Lena continued to work, pulling out a laptop and typing away on it. Kara switched between books and listening to music in one ear, taking a few minutes to glance around the plane every once and a while. This time Lena didn’t comment on her uptight-ness, acting as if she didn’t notice.

About 5 hours into the flight the hostess came around with prepped meals, presenting them to Kara and Lena as if they were at a five-star restaurant. Lena also asked for a glass of whiskey, sipping it as she ate. “You can order a drink, you know,” Lena suggested as Kara drank the given bottle of water. “I just don’t drink while I’m working- or in general, really. I’m too worried about the people around me getting hurt and I can’t do anything about it, so I always try to keep a clear head.”

Lena gave Kara a curious look as she set her whiskey down. “So what am I going to have to do to get you to relax?” Lena smiled playfully, but it wasn’t forced like it was when Kara first met her with James. Kara scoffed and shrugged. “I don’t know… Stay in my line of sight at all times?” Lena laughed at the comment, and a slightly warm feeling filled Kara’s chest.

Kara felt a sort of satisfaction hearing her new boss laugh and watching her smile at a joke she made. It felt nice, as if she was being accepted. Kara chuckled along with Lena, trying to pretend like she didn’t feel like a young high school girl who just made the cute popular girl genuinely laugh.

“Well I’m with you now, but I understand that it’s your job to be worried about everything around us… So I’ll let it slide.” Lena gave a small wink that made Kara smile even wider, turning back to her half-finished meal.

When it started to get properly dark outside of the plane, Lena finally put her work away and looked out the window for a while. They only had a couple more hours in the flight before landing in Italy, and Kara was practically counting down the minutes by now. She was tired of sitting, and as much as she wanted to sleep away the last bit of the flight, she was worried about leaving Lena vulnerable.

So, to keep herself awake, Kara decided to get up every 30 to 45 minutes to walk around the flight. Lena had closed her eyes, and was lounging back in her large seat, supposedly taking a nap. Thankfully nothing odd seemed to be on the plane. Everyone was either asleep or doing something quietly such as watching a movie or reading a book.

Kara paced around the flight up until one of the flight attendants stopped her. “We’ll be descending within the next hour or two, and things are going to get rather bumpy. Would you mind taking your seat?” Kara agreed, politely smiling and nodding her head before going back to her seat. Lena was still resting, her face turned away from Kara.

The flight attendant had been right; The flight started to get bumpy, everyone jostling around in their seats. Kara had flown enough that the turbulence didn’t really bother her. Lena, on the other hand, was woken up by it. She sat up stiffly, glancing around the plane.

“We’ll be landing soon, don’t worry,” Kara reassured, noticing how stressed her boss started to get. Lena gave Kara a stubborn look. “Who said I was worried?” She asked defiantly, but as soon as the plane jolted, she gasped and clung tensely to her arm rests. Kara tried to not show her amusement, finding her child-like fear kind of adorable.

“Do you not fly a lot?” Kara asked, hoping that if Lena started talking, it’d calm her down. “I do, but they’re usually short flights across the States, or someplace closer than Italy.” Lena bent down into her bag, picking out a small airport bottle of expensive looking whiskey. She took multiple sips before putting it back into her bag.

“What places have you been to?” Kara eyed the whiskey, but said nothing about it. “I haven’t been to Europe a whole lot, but I’ve been plenty to Quebec, all over Panama, Mexico City… Places like that.” Kara silently wondered what business the Immortals had in places like that. “Is this your first time going to Italy?”

“I passed through Northern Italy in a car, while going from Croatia to France but we didn’t stop, no. It was very beautiful from what I remember.” The plane jolted again, but Lena didn’t flinch so bad this time- simply tensing her shoulders up. Kara hoped it was because she was distracted with the conversation, but she also figured it was the whiskey in Lena’s system.

“What about you?” Lena asked, trying to lean casually on her elbow as she looked to Kara. “What do you mean? Have I been to Italy?” Lena smiled pleasantly and nodded. “I’ve lived there for six months- although not consecutively. I’ve had multiple clients all over the place there. I’ve seen almost all of the major cities.”

Lena looked impressed, her eyebrows raising. “Wow, really? I didn’t know that!” She looked excited, and for a moment all Kara could think about was how Lena was a rather beautiful person when she smiled and showed such genuine emotion. Then, however, a question popped into her head. “Wait- You didn’t know that? It’s in my file that’s given to you by my agency.” Kara tilted her head, raising an eyebrow.

“Oh, well I didn’t read your file…. I figured I don’t need to; I’ll just get to know you myself.” Lena gave a small shrug. Kara continued to look confuse. Most of her clients didn’t even bother to learn her name; not because they feel the need to get to know Kara themselves, like Lena does, but because they didn’t care enough. It was odd working for someone who actually treated Kara like a human.

There was another patch of turbulence, but now Lena wasn’t even paying attention. “So where exactly have you been in Italy? Have you seen where we’re going now- Rome?” Kara had to think for a moment, counting all the cities she had been over the past two years. “I’ve been to Rome, Florence, Naples, Pompeii, Bari, and Venice. I was at each place for about a month.”

Lena looked like she was talking to a super star, her jaw ajar and her eyes wide in awe. What she said earlier seemed to be very genuine; Lena actually wanted to get to know Kara herself, not through some piece of paper. “What was your favorite place to go? Do you think you could show me some cool places around Rome?”

The flight attendant’s voice called over the intercom, interrupting Kara before she could even speak. “Ladies and Gentlemen, we are now about to land…” She went on about the proper landing routine, Kara quickly gathering the items she hadn’t put back into her bag already. The previous conversation had already been forgotten as Kara and Lena prepared to land.

Through the pitch black window, Kara could see the lights of the runway appear. The plane descended until there was a sudden jolt, signaling that the tires were on the ground. The plane slowed quickly before taxing to its terminal. First class was let off the plane first, Kara leading Lena out of the terminal and into the airport.

Despite the late hour the airport was decently busy. Kara had Lena walk closely behind her as she scanned the crowed constantly. As they started to walk further a group of men in suits suddenly walked up to the two women. Kara tensed up, pausing in her walking before realizing that the men were other Immortals. They spoke to Lena, ignoring Kara as they started debriefing their boss.

The group walked to the bag pick up, the group of Immortals surrounding Lena in a sort of protective circle. Kara walked along Lena’s left, scanning around them continuously. They found their bags easily, escorting Lena to a group of black SUV’s. Kara had Lena get into the back of the middle SUV, sliding into the passenger seat herself. 

It was late in the evening, and Kara could feel the exhaustion from traveling all day getting to her. She tried to not let her eyes lull as she watched ahead of them. The lead SUV led the way away from the airport and further into the city. 

Rome was just as beautiful as Kara remembered; Lights illuminated the city, showing the beautiful architecture and wild night scene. There were plenty of tourists around, even some adults riding rented bicycles on the side of the road.

Lena was pretty much silent the entire ride. Kara was able to see in her peripheral that Lena was texting on her phone. If she was tired she didn’t show it, her eyes still alert as she occasionally glanced up to look out the side windows.

The drive took about 45 minutes before the SUV’s pulled up towards a luxury hotel. Kara recognized it from her short time in Rome, having always passed by it while she was escorting her client at the time. She had always dreamed off visiting the hotel, thinking it was the definition of opulence. Kara had to physically contain her excitement when she realized this was where she was going to be staying the night.

Kara got out of the car first, opening the door to allow some of the Immortals and Lena out of the car. Lena mumbled something under her breath that sounded eerily similar to, “Thank you,” which made Kara pause and vaguely raise her eyebrow. Did she hear her right, or did she say something else?

There wasn’t much time to process this, the group already starting to make their way inside the hotel. Once again Kara assumed her position to Lena’s left, walking with the other Immortals. Kara tried her best not to look around the hotel lobby in awe; Everything was white, with black accents scattered throughout.

Thick Ancient Roman styled pillars held up the ceiling, three massive gold chandeliers hanging above the group as they strolled inside. The front desk was directly across the room from the front entrance, a brilliant fountain with gold stags at the center piece in the middle of the lobby.

An Immortal walked ahead of the group to check everyone in, gathering the simple black room keys. It seemed like multiple of the Immortals had grouped up to share rooms, but Lena got her own key card. Kara was expecting to tag along with some of the mafia members, but when she was handed her own key card she was surprised.

A young Immortal woman noticed her slightly quizzical look, leaning in to whisper, “It’s customary for the Luthor’s body guard to stay in a room attached to whoever they’re looking after.” That made complete sense; Kara just wasn’t used to her clients staying in a hotel. Normally they had safe houses.

Once everything was situated, everyone made their way up to their rooms. All the rooms were on the same floor, relatively close to one another. Kara didn’t enter her room until she was certain Lena was safely in hers. Lena paused before entering her room, grinning to Kara. “You know, you never answered my question earlier.”

Kara raised her eyebrow in confusion. She asked her a question? She had no idea Lena had even acknowledged her after their flight, aside from something that sounded like a thanks earlier when she exited the SUV. “What was the question again?” Kara asked, tilting her head to the side.

Lena chuckled, shifting so she was fully facing Kara- all the other Immortals had entered their rooms, so they were alone in the hallway. “Would you be willing to show me around Rome once this business is over? It’ll only take two or three days for me to do this meeting with the Bianchi family. I can just extend our stay for another three days or so… Come on, it’ll be fun!”

Kara scoffed, crossing her arms. She glanced at where the other Immortals disappeared into their rooms. “I don’t think your buddies would appreciate me dragging them all around Rome.” She gestured with her chin towards the hotel doors. Lena barley glanced in their rooms general direction, her fierce green eyes still on Kara.

“No, they’d go back to National City. I mean just you and me; I’m tired of constantly having a bunch of people escort me around. I want to be just a normal tourist!” Lena looked excited talking about the possibility of getting to see such a beautiful historic city. Kara would have felt too bad if she turned Lena down… Even if she didn’t have a whole lot of connection with this woman who was basically a stranger.

“I won’t be able to be a complete tour guide, if that’s what you’re looking for. Unfortunately, I’m not amazing at history. I just know where everything is.” Kara gave a half shrug, wondering if that would be a deal breaker for Lena. It didn’t seem to bother her what-so-ever, her excitement not changing. “That’s fine, I remember my history classes in school,” Lena chuckled.

Kara couldn’t help but grin ever so slightly, amused by Lena’s excitement. “Okay… Well then yeah, I don’t see why we can’t go around and explore.” Kara had to admit that Italy was one of the top 5 best places she’d worked in, in the past 2 years. Lena beamed, nodding as she started to pull her key card out.

“Perfect. Well then I’ll see you tomorrow, Ms. Danvers.” Kara nodded to Lena, watching her enter her hotel room. Kara glanced around the hallway before swiping her key card, the door beeping softly, allowing Kara to open it and push her bag inside. As soon as the door was closed, Kara let out a deep sigh, sagging against it.

She was absolutely exhausted. The time difference didn’t matter to her, the long plane ride and early morning back in National City took a lot out of Kara. She could hardly pull together enough effort to be impressed with the beautiful room she was going to spend the next few days it. It was a large for a normal hotel room- although not as big as some of the suites she’s seen in movies.

Kara glanced around the room as she took her work clothing off. She placed her suit case up on a rack once she’d undressed, pulling out some running shorts and a worn out tank top. She also took her contacts out and pulled her hair down from its bun. The last thing Kara did before turning off the lights was finding a good show to put on the TV, so she at least had a little bit of light.

Once everything was set, Kara went and flopped face down onto the massive bed in the middle of the room. She felt every muscle in her body relax, letting out an involuntary sigh. Kara didn’t even bother scooting up to get properly under the blankets, her mind drifting off to sleep within a few minutes of laying in the center of the bed.

**********

Kara was up and out of bed by 6:30am, getting dressed in a navy and black suit. She wasn’t able to bring her gun along with her, so she settled with strapping a knife to her calf, under her pants. When she walked out of her hotel room, the same Immortal woman who spoke with her yesterday had her fist hovering in the air- as if she was about to knock. The woman looked surprised to see Kara up and ready.

“Hey-… Uh, we’re about to get ready to head out. We’re just waiting on Ms. Luthor.” The young woman anxiously stepped back. She was rather short, with lots of tattoos and a short undercut. “Has anyone told her that we’re ready to go?” Kara asked, glancing at the meandering Immortals. The woman shook her head, a hand drifting up to mess with the hem of her shirt. “We’ve been told not to bother her by the higher ups…”

Kara sighed, silently wondering why everyone was so afraid of Lena. She seemed like a rather nice woman- although Kara had to guess it was just because she was heir to such a massive legacy. Regardless, that didn’t cause Kara to hesitate as she knocked on the door. “Ms. Luthor, we’re ready to leave now,” Kara called through the door.

There was a moments pause as Kara could hear loud shuffling on the other side of the door. She took two steps backwards when the lock of the door being messed with could be heard. Lena appeared as the door opened, looking immaculate. Her hair was up in an impressively tight bun, and her crimson lipstick seemed to pop just a little bit more today.

“So, you’ve learned how to knock,” Lena said with a wicked smirk. Kara couldn’t help but snort, shaking her head. “Considering I don’t have a key to your front door, you’re correct.” Before Lena could say anything in response, one of the Immortals stepped in. “Ma’am, we should get going. The Bianchi’s are almost ready for us.”

Lena looked as if she was about to frown in disappointment, but held back the emotion. Instead she just nodded. “You’re right, Sean… Let’s get going, everyone.” Lena stepped fully out into the hallway, the door that was slightly ajar- just a sliver –closing fully behind her. She had what looked to be a small brief case in her hand, Kara assuming it had paperwork of some sort.

The group walked in their usual formation out of the hotel, and back into the SUV’s. Once again Lena was silent as she texted on her phone, up until they started to drive through the less tourist plagued parts of the city. Kara also couldn’t help but pay full attention to where they were going; she’d never been in this part of Rome before, having always stuck to the more populated areas.

Eventually the transport took them completely out if the city, forest on either side of them. Kara soon realized that the Bianchi family probably had their own remote mansion in the forest of Rome. Her assumption was proven correct when the convoy pulled off onto a very obvious driveway.

A massive gate stopped them, the front car pulling up to a code box for a moment. The blockade was a concoction of twisted iron bars, with golden grape vines twisting through them, convening in the center to form a large ‘B’. 

The driver pressed a button, and distantly spoke to a voice that came from the box. There was a short pause before the gate rolled open. The motor pool pulled through the gates, Kara looking all over as they drove up the driveway. The thick woods all around them eventually opened up to a massive clearing. There were rolling hills that sloped up to a flat plateau, a house as big as a castle standing high and mighty.

It took everything in Kara to not let her jaw drop in awe. The building looked similar to the Palace of Versailles, with straight walls and countless windows. The driveway wound up to the front of the building, the SUV’s pulling up to the front door, which was covered with a massive two story portico.

Kara was the first out of the car, walking around to the back driver side door, opening it up for the trio in the back to exit. As Lena got out, Kara walked close to her. “I understand it’s annoying to have someone glued to you, but I need you to let me properly do my job,” Kara mumbled under her voice in a serious tone.

Lena looked up at her, eyes oddly soft in understanding. “Of course,” she replied quietly. The tension that Kara had been holding in her stomach suddenly dissipated. Knowing that her client was going to cooperate and allow her to actually protect her from any sort of threat eased Kara’s anxiety greatly. Kara had to knowledge of the Bianchi family, so therefore she had to be extra careful. This was her first true test as a body guard for Lena.

Kara walked just slightly ahead and to the left of Lena, keeping close to her. The rest of the Immortals also walked along with her, but they kept the front of Lena’s pathway open so that the Bianchi’s could properly see her.

The large double doors of the manor opened, a lone man wearing a stereotypical butlers uniform stepping outside to greet Lena and the Immortals. “Good morning, Ms. Luthor. It’s good to meet you.” The man bowed slightly.

Lena nodded politely to the man. She held her chin high, but not in a snobbish, “I’m looking down on you,” way. Instead, it felt like she had more authority that way. It reminded Kara of the first time she saw Lena; she seemed to emanate an aura of supremacy.

“If you’ll follow me, I can show you to Vera and Donatello Bianchi; the head of the Bianchi family, and his wife,” the butler instructed politely. The Immortals followed the butler into the brilliant manor. It was decorated exactly how most would imagine a house like this would be decorated. Once again Kara had to restrain from looking all around herself in awe.

The butler led the large group up a massive flight of stairs, going past the second floor and exiting on the third. The house was mostly devoid of people, except for a few maids who scuttled away as soon as they saw the party walking through the large hallways.

The group was led into a large sitting room, the walls covered in original art and beautiful wood paneling. There were multiple plush velvet couches in the center of the room. “I’ve been instructed to ask you to take only two of your most trusted groups members inside the main office, madam.” The butler smiled politely.

Lena glanced back at her group of Immortals. “Finn, Ammarah… I’ll also be bringing my body guard in with me.” The butler glanced to Kara while an older man, and the young woman from earlier stepped closer to Lena. “I’m sure Signore Bianchi won’t mind the extra guard… The rest of your group can stay here.” The butler gestured to the couches before turning and leading Lena and the others through some well disguised doors.

This room looked like your typical boss’ office, with the large wall of half windows and a massive oak desk in the center of the room. However, no one was sitting at that desk. Instead, they were off to the right, sitting at a conference table with about ten seats around it. Three of those seats were taken up by two men and a woman.

Lena sat down her brief case at one end of the table, pausing for a moment when a man Kara could only assume was Donatello Bianchi walked closer with an extended hand. Kara watched closely as Lena met the man halfway, politely smiling as she shook his hand. “It’s good to finally get in contact with you, Signora Luthor. You’re just as stunning at the rumors say.”

There was a palpable pause where Kara could see the offended look on Lena’s face without even actually seeing her face. Signore Bianchi looked worried, her eyes going wide realizing his mistake. “I hope you were paying attention to more than just the rumors of my beauty, Signore; That isn’t what this meeting is about. I assume you want something to do with my family’s business.”

Lena’s voice was deathly cold, Kara having to withhold a shiver. Donatello looked almost terrified, looking back to his wife, Vera. “Don’t worry, Signora Luthor, I’ve paid attention to what we’re here for… Though we’re asking for a rather odd request from your family,” Vera quickly added. She gave her husband a disapproving look, although it wasn’t nearly as cold as Lena’s posture.

Everyone took their seats, Kara opting to stand against a wall just like the Bianchi’s guards. “This is our son, Leonardo. He’s here to observe the way things are run, and hopefully learn the business.” Leonardo nodded as his mother introduced him, smiling politely. Lena simply flickered her chin before looking back to Vera.

“Well, then we should get down to business so he can learn it… You initiated this meeting, so please tell me what you’ve asked the Immortals here for.” Lena gestured to the family before clasping her hands on the table in front of her. Donatello was the one to present what they needed, stumbling into a nervous speech.

In short, what the Bianchi family needs is help not only gathering more members, but also creating a successful front for their clan. Back in the 50’s the Bianchi ran a massive section of Rome. However, as times started to change, they lost most of their power and territory to rival gangs and cops.

If the Bianchi family could create a safe front- one that was just as strong as L-Corp and its legitimate business –they’d be able to gather more followers. Vera and Donatello wanted to build up their empire once again, and take back over Rome from their competition.

Lena listened quietly, her green eyes darting all over the family; studying them. When Donatello finished speaking, Lena stayed silent for a long moment. She visibly contemplated on the next few words out of her mouth. “While I can’t tell you the exact secret on how my family built up L-Corp, I can help you.” The Bianchi family’s eyes brightened.

“We’ll start from the ground up; fix what you’re doing wrong now, then build upon the repaired base.” The Bianchi’s burst out into praise and thanks, calling Lena their angel from heaven, and how she was not going to regret helping them out. Lena stopped their blubbering with a hand, looking vaguely uncomfortable with how they were acting.

Lena rolled smoothly into a sort of Q&A with the family, pulling out a pen and paper and writing down notes. She’d ask the Bianchi’s how they did certain things, writing them down so she could look at them later and figure out what systems to throw away and keep. The entire conversation took quite a while, and Kara found her mind drifting off to other places.

She started to think of all the area’s she could possibly re-visit with Lena. Of course she’d love to revisit all the historic places: The Colosseum, St. Peter’s Basilica, the Pantheon… But where else could they go? Kara didn’t want to disappoint her new boss, and honestly she really did enjoy her stay in Rome.

There was Trevi Fountain- although that was probably one of the most popular attractions out there. Centro Storico and the Spanish Steps were possibly one of Kara’s most favorite places to walk through whenever she was off duty. There were lots of museums and historic buildings all along the popular street. 

Piazza Novona kind of reminded Kara of Washington DC with its tall pointed tower at the end of the plaza. If Lena and Kara were to spend multiple days at Rome, Kara wondered if she could reserve an entire day to look at Villa Borghese Gallery and Gardens. Kara had never been there, but she’d always dreamed of seeing the museums and the beautiful architecture.

If Kara had a little bit of spare time at the end of the night, maybe she could write a list and do some research on each area, and tell Lena about some of the history of each location. Kara knew that Lena probably remembered a decent amount of the general history of Rome, but that wasn’t nearly as good as knowing individual historic events.

Kara’s thoughts were interrupted when suddenly the doors to the office flew open. Kara instantly stood at attention, her hand instinctively reaching for the gun that she didn’t have. A man that looked as angry as a bull stormed into the room, looking from the surprised Lena to the even more surprised Bianchi family. “You bastards!” The man suddenly yelled to the Bianchi’s.

Kara could instantly tell that this man was somehow related to the trio sitting at the table. He looked to be the older brother of Leonardo. “You did this without me- and worst of all you had Leo replace me!” Spit flew from the man’s mouth as he spoke with exaggerated hand movements. Donatello stood up, his eyes narrowing and his face turning as red as his elder son’s.

“How dare you act in such a manner, Alanzo! We have important guests!” Donatello slammed his palm against the table. Kara stood stiffly, her eyes locked on Alanzo, ready to step forward if he got any closer to Lena, who looked confused and slightly angry. Her eyes were wide and her eyebrow arched high.

“I don’t give a rat’s ass who’s here! You promised me that would be my spot- that we’d build this business together, father!” Alanzo gestured to his brother, who looked terrified, shrinking in his chair. “We will talk about this privately; when we don’t have Signora Luthor here to watch this fiasco!” Donatello moved to walk around the table, but his wife grabbed his wrist.

“You don’t deserve to sit in that seat,” she growled with pure anger, “You’ve disappointed us time and time again. You don’t care about this family, you only care about the power and money.” This was the most confusing, TV drama Kara had ever seen. Her face was hard as she glared at Alanzo, but internally she was scratching her head trying to figure out what the hell was going on.

“You’re never here, so why do you expect us to shower you with money you haven’t earned? Leo actually wants to help us, not steal from us.” These words only seemed to make Alanzo angrier. In the corner of Kara’s eyes, she could see Lena stand. “I think you need to leave, and wait for a more appropriate time to confront your family,” she said in a calm, cool voice.

Alanzo, already on the brink of violence, visibly jumped off that mental cliff. He picked his intended target- Lena, who was the closest –surging forward with his fist cocked. He didn’t even get half a step closer to Lena before Kara was between them. She didn’t bother striking out with her fist, intending to subdue her target.

Kara’s hand shot out and grabbed Alanzo’s face, shoving him back. His legs, continuing to move despite his torso becoming stationary, flew out in front of him. Kara easily pushed down, kneeling with Alanzo’s body as it slammed against the carpeted floor. Before the younger man could even react to what had happened, Kara flipped him over to his stomach and grabbed his limp arms. She yanked them backwards, crossing his wrists forcefully and then kneeling all her weight on them so he couldn’t move.

The entire think happened within two seconds, everyone around Kara freezing for a moment; to them she came out of nowhere and took down a grown man before they could even blink. Kara wasn’t even breathing heavily, her blue eyes blazing as her heart hammered with adrenaline.

“Ouch! That hurts! Get off me!” Alanzo cussed and squirmed, but every time he moved winced in pain, his arms in a very uncomfortable position. “We should kill him for that!” Finn’s voice growled from behind Kara. “No, we won’t,” Lena’s voice dripped with authority. Kara couldn’t help but glance back at the group. Lena looked from the stunned Bianchi’s, then back to Kara. She looked rather impressed, a smirk ever-so-slightly pulling at the corner of her mouth.

“We’ll let him off with a warning… I expect you to control your son- and anyone else –better next time I’m here, Signore Bianchi. Otherwise I can’t promise what my Immortals will do to them.” Lena’s voice echoed powerfully off the walls, the cold sound of it matching her piercing ice green eyes. The Bianchi family looked terrified once again, looking from their son being restrained and then to Lena.

“Of course! There will be no more interruptions, we promise. Better yet; I vow on my life that there will be no one that intervenes,” Donatello said in a panicked voice. Lena gave the patriarch a small, cold smile, as if saying, “I’ll hold you to that.” She then looked to Kara, who was still kneeling on the boy. “You can let him up now, Ms. Danvers.”

Straight away Kara stood. She didn’t offer her opponent a hand, not even watching him as he scrambled up, trying to save what little dignity he had left by straightening his shirt and storming out of the room. Kara looked to Lena, who flashed her a much warmer grin and a curt nod. Lena then turned back to the Bianchi’s.

“I’ll leave you to deal with your family. Tomorrow I will work with you some more, but that will be it. You get 8 hours of my time.” Lena emanated authority as she spoke, her head held high and her shoulders pushed back. She seemed taller- almost taller than Kara –with a look on her face that could rival Medusa.

Lena gestured for the two Immortal officers and Kara to come along, moving to walk out of the office. She paused just before leaving the room, however, turning back to Donatello and his family. “Oh, I also recommend you start tomorrow off by getting better security guards… Clearly yours aren’t quite up to point.” Lena’s terrifying green eyes glanced between the two useless guards that simply stood at the back of the room the entire time.

With that, Lena turned and left the room.


	3. Chapter 3: Roaming around Rome

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kara and Lena tour around Rome, while Kara struggles to keep her relationship with Lena professional.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it took me a little bit to update, I've been very busy. Please enjoy the chapter, and I hope the ending isn't too abrupt. I didn't want to go into the same scenario over and over again with them touring each spot in Rome, so I shortened it in the end.
> 
> Have a good night, everyone!  
> -Aries

This morning Kara didn’t have to knock on Lena’s door to remind her that it was time to leave. Kara stepped outside of her room only a few seconds before Lena, who was on the phone with someone. She looked annoyed as the person on the other end spoke, not really acknowledging the people around her. She simple gestured towards the elevator with her chin when the group paused in the hallway.

Lena started walking down the hall, the rest of the group lurching after her, surprised to see she was so ready to go. Kara quickly caught up with Lena, her long legs striding wide. Just as they all got onto an elevator, Lena spoke to the person on the phone.

“Yes- and I know that –but regardless of what _you_ want, that’s not what we’re here for… Mother, I’ve got this handled. You don’t need to be calling-“ Lena’s annoyed voice suddenly ended, and Lillian’s loud voice could be heard coming through the phone. She was yelling at Lena, who looked a mixture of embarrassed and angry.

Kara, understanding how awkward it is for people to be listening to your bad phone call, started talking. “So, Finn, have you guys ever been to Italy before?” She looked to the Immortal officer, hoping he understood why she was asking.

Finn quickly connected the dots, his eyes glancing at Lena for a split moment before looking back at Kara. “No, but I’ve done one of those virtual tours of the Louvre before,” Finn said in a rather awkward tone. Luckily Kara didn’t have to say anything else pertaining to the conversation, because the elevator doors opened.

Lena stepped off straight away, continuing to talk in a very irritated tone. The slight annoyance that had been on her face earlier was now full blown anger. She seemed to be struggling to keep her tone down as she strode through the hotel lobby.

Kara was worried that she’d have to start another awkward conversation with someone in the car, but luckily Lena hung up the phone just before getting in. Now, however, there was an awkward sort of tension that made the air palpable. Kara shifted stiffly in her seat, having to hold herself back from anxiously biting her nails… This was going to be a long drive.

The convoy made their way back to the Bianchi’s home, being welcomed in by the same butler as the day before. Lena still looked upset about her phone call, a dark look in her eyes. However, she managed to force a convincing smile as they met with Vera and Donatello. Leo was no longer here, nor the boy Kara had to take down, Alanzo.

This meeting went by just as slowly as the others, but instead Lena spoke for a majority of the conference. Kara didn’t allow her mind to wander today, feeling as if one of the reasons Alanzo managed to get inside the room was because she wasn’t paying enough attention to what was going on around her.

Thankfully there were no interruptions during the meeting. Lena had started off rather strong and aggressive, but as the time passed by her annoyance at her mother seemed to slowly fade away. She still looked to be in a bad mood, but her smile at the end of the meeting wasn’t nearly as forced.

“You have helped us tremendously with your advice, Signora Luthor. I don’t think we can ever fully repay you, but I hope this will at least be a good start,” Vera shook Lena’s hand, offering what looked like a check to her. Lena took the check, thanking Vera and Donatello before handing it off to Ammarah.

There were a few more good-byes before the Immortals left the Bianchi’s home. Kara noticed that both Leo and Alanzo were standing down one hallway as they left, giving Alanzo a stern look before he was blocked from her sight.

The mood among the group of Immortals was much more relaxed; they were no longer going to a potentially dangerous area, and their boss no longer looked like she wanted to tear someone’s head off… Kara had to admit, her natural curiosity made her wonder what the conversation was like between Lena and Lillian that made Lena so angry.

They went back to the hotel, but as Lena got out of the car, she didn’t start walking into the hotel. “The rest of you can go inside and do whatever you want- It’s your last night in Italy after all… I’m going to stop by a museum… Maybe enjoy myself a little bit.” Lena added the last part under her breath, a tired look passing over her face for a split second.

Kara quietly wondered if Lena expected her to start off their touring vacation early, following her back into the SUV. The hired driver of the car asked Lena where she wanted to go, Lena showing the man her phone screen. He paused to read it before smiling and nodding.

As the car started to move, Lena sat back in her seat with a large sigh. Kara, who was still sitting in the front passenger seat, looked back at her. Lena hid it well around others, but she looked exhausted once a majority of her personnel was gone.

Kara almost didn’t say anything, feeling as if it wasn’t her place to question Lena. She felt bad, however, wondering if Lena had yet to get any actual sleep in the past 72 hours. “So you pulled another all-nighter?” Kara asked softly, glancing back at Lena who’s eyes quickly shifted from the window to Kara. “Was I being that obvious?” Lena asked with an embarrassed look.

“No, not really… You held it together when the others were around pretty well.” Kara offered a small smile, her silent pity growing. Lena scoffed at the comment, smiling softly for a moment before her smile faded away, looking down at her lap. “I’ve got such bad jet lag, and my mother decided to call me at 3am this morning.”

Kara couldn’t stop the look of confusion on her face. Her mother was calling her at 3am? Lena noticed the look, explaining, “She somehow forgot that Italy is 9 hours ahead of National City… My sleeping schedule is just all messed up. I have no idea how you managed to do this for so long.”

“At the very beginning of my career in the army- when we would travel to a different city or country –I’d get so messed up on the time differences. Eventually I just learned that you can’t let yourself sleep until it’s dark. Then, eventually, your body will assume night time means sleep time… That, or you take micro naps as much as you can. I learned to sleep anywhere and everywhere no matter the circumstance.” Kara heard Lena chuckle, grinning at the positive noise.

“So then I’ll just have to force myself to stay awake till it’s dark outside.” Lena had a small smile on her face, looking oddly amused. “Well then a museum trip will help you. Good choice,” Kara added, looking back ahead of the car.

The trip to whatever museum Lena had picked out was short, the SUV pulling off to this long side driveway that turned into a round-about with foliage in the center. Lena looked rather excited, off handedly commenting to the driver that she’d call him to come back when they were done. Kara slid out of the car, hurrying after Lena as she started to walk towards the building.

It was tall, maybe 5 stories tall, surrounding the entire driveway. In all honesty it didn’t even look like a traditional museum, and more like a hotel. There were no signs or markers she could see that could tell her where she was. Kara furrowed her eyebrows as she moved in front of Lena, walking her inside the building.

Instantly Kara noticed the front room was completely covered in art. The walls- even the ceiling –had golden framed portraits, nude scenes, and still lives. Kara paused for a moment, her eyes scanning around the entire room trying to make sense of it.

There was a beautiful front desk where a young man sat, looking up from a computer as he heard Kara and Lena come in. He studied the girls for a moment before questioningly saying, “English?” The two women glanced at one another before Lena snickered. “We’re that obvious?”

The gentleman smiled, laughing slightly. “I mean no offense… Are you here to tour the Palazzo Colonna?” Lena spoke with the man at the front desk while Kara continued to look around, standing behind Lena. A majority of the art looked to be Renaissance, which was secretly her favorite time period. It was such a defining moment in history that it was hard not to be fascinated by everything that happened.

Lena got Kara and herself tickets, but denied a tour guide, taking a map instead. “I’d like to give you as little stress as possible,” Lena said quietly to Kara when she noticed her quizzical look. Kara had to hold back her laughter, instead grinning. That was oddly nice of Lena; sacrificing her ability to fully understand the art and museum just so Kara didn’t have to worry about some stranger threatening Lena’s safety.

Opening the large map of the complex, Lena started their tour off by walking through incredibly tall double doors. If Kara thought the lobby had a lot of art, it was nothing compared to the actual exhibits. Statues on golden and marble tables lines the edges of the room. The walls were covered in huge paintings just like the lobby, and the ceiling was painted with pieces of work that reminded Kara of Michelangelo’s work.

Kara’s jaw physically dropped as she looked straight up at what looked to be a mural of angels above them. She heard Lena give a soft, “Oh, wow…” as she also looked all around them. The museum didn’t seem too busy to Kara’s relief. That meant she could possibly enjoy herself a little bit as Lena walked around.

Lena went straight to the right side of the very elongated room, looking at a trio of busts set on a decently sized table. The top was made of some sort of tan marble-like stone. The bottom legs were a baroque style; a mix of twisting golden metal with soft twirls and jagged curves. The statues were of three men- Kara had no idea who they were –with stern looks on their faces.

The two women took their time in this room. There was so much to look at that Kara wouldn’t have been surprised if they spent a minimum of 3 hours in this room. At one point Lena paused for quite a while at a piece that Kara actually recognized.

It was of a man in a straw hat and plain clothing sitting at a table. He had multiple things of food around him, but he looked to be just about to take a bite of a spoonful of beans. He had an odd look on his face; a mixture of surprise and confusion almost. 

“Do you want to know the name of this one?” Kara asked quietly, trying not to show her amusement at the painting. It looked kind of funny in her opinion. Lena looked away from the painting, her eyebrows furrowed as she noticed Kara was trying to hold back giggles. “This is ‘The Bean-eater’ by Annibale Carracci.”

The sound of Lena’s sudden quiet laughter almost made Kara loose her composure. “Well, I guess that makes sense,” Lena said through her fit of giggles, covering her mouth with a hand. She gestured to the unusually large bowl of beans in front of the bean-eater, her laughter only getting harder as she thought about it more.

Kara couldn’t stop herself from smiling. Both the comedic name of the painting, and Lena’s almost juvenile amusement made her lips split apart in a toothy grin. Lena’s face started to flush as she visibly tried to stop herself from laughing any more.

“Come on- we need to keep moving before another wave hits,” Lena said as her giggling started to stop. She quickly moved away from the painting. Kara took one last glance at the befuzzled man, snorting before hurriedly following after Lena.

The two women made their way completely around the Great Hall, Kara recognizing a few more well-known paintings among the gallery. She told their names to Lena, who looked impressed. “I’m surprised you know so much about this stuff. You didn’t strike me as a viewer of the fine arts.” Kara shrugged. “I enjoy it is all… I’ve got a decent memory, so if something really catches my eye I tend to remember a lot of details about it. Such as names of beautiful- or odd –paintings.”

Once Lena took her time looking at all the paintings and statues she made her way into the next room. This one was considerably smaller than the Great Hall. The walls were painted all as one landscape, and there were four tiny black statues dotted around the room. In the center of the beautiful area was a small, circular, golden table with three black vases that looked oddly like urns.

Lena didn’t spend a whole lot of time in this room, taking a moment to inspect the landscape painted all around them. She seemed most interested in the large crystal chandelier that hung above the golden table. “I’ve always had a morbid curiosity about what would happen if one of those fell.”

The comment was made so off-handedly that Kara almost thought Lena was talking to herself more than anything. She realized Lena was looking for a response when she looked at her, that usual smirk resting on her lips. “I’d imagine it’d be quite a mess,” Kara said with a tiny shrug.

They moved on, down a long hallway. There was an exhibit in a glass box, Lena pausing to look at it with Kara. It looked like a large model of some sort of artistic wall. It had small, beautiful paintings on a royal blue background. There were small metal statues adorned with golden garb all along the top of the wall. The tiny details were beautiful, Kara leaning forward a little to get a better look at the paintings along the bottom of the wall.

There were only a few more rooms inside the museum to go through. One of them was painted red, with paintings much like the Great Hall all around. It wasn’t decorated nearly as beautifully, but there was still a ton to look at.

As Lena finished up the last room, she looked down at the map. “It looks like there’s some gardens we can walk through- If you’re up for it, that is.” Lena looked to Kara, a slightly hopeful look on her face. Kara was exhausted from standing - and now walking –all day. She glanced at her wrist watch, noticing that they had been there over 5 hours. It was well past 8pm.

Kara glanced outside to see it was dark, silently wondering if they’d be able to even see anything outside. She wanted to say no, and suggest they go back to the hotel or even get something to eat. However, the hopeful look in Lena’s eyes made her pause. Lena had just as hard of a day as Kara, and Kara knew that she probably needed this distraction… She could always sleep in tomorrow, considering they didn’t have a schedule for the next museum’s Kara was going to take them to.

“I mean… As long as we’re not going to get stuck here if they close, you can do whatever you’d like.” The pure excitement on Lena’s face made Kara feel like the extra time would be worth it. It made her feel good knowing someone around her was happy- even if that person was almost a complete stranger.

“Just a quick look, then we can get something to eat.” Lena hurried through the halls, finding her way into the gardens. It was incredibly dark, and very chilly outside. Kara had to hold back a shiver, wondering why it was so cold this early into Fall. Lena didn’t seem very bothered by it, gasping at the sight of the foliage around them.

The gardens were even bigger than the museum. They were absolutely beautiful, with expertly shaped trees, beautiful stone and gravel pathways, and a bunch of statues that Kara couldn’t help but study. They walked along the top edge, looking down the slowly sloping hill, which suddenly dropped off to a small viewing area.

The Palazzo Colonna was apparently high up on a tall hill, because the viewing area showed what felt like all of Rome… The city was lit up beautifully, the dull noise of the city emanating from below. Somewhere of in the far distance Kara thought she heard the honking of a car horn. It almost reminded her of how National City sounded- although quieter.

Lena stood at the small wall that blocked anyone from falling off the edge of the hill, her eyes wide and shining as she slowly scanned over the beautiful city. Kara stood a few feet behind her, looking at her back-lit silhouette.

She looked completely and utterly relaxed. All stress and exhaustion seemed to have been wiped away. Her shoulders were relaxed, hands hanging limply at her sides. She no longer clenched her fingers into fists, letting them extend, slightly bent at the tips. Her head was no longer held high, sort of sagging down a little bit. Lena didn’t bother to give off her authoritative aura anymore. She looked like she was finally being herself… Her true self.

Kara’s breath caught in her throat when Lena turned at her shoulders, seeing the multi-colored glow from the city light up half of Lena’s face, wind slightly blowing her pinned up hair. The shadows on her face were sharp, extenuating her beauty; her strong jaw line, her long nose, her full lips. Her emerald green eyes practically shined, the colorful light drawing all of Kara’s attention to them.

“Come look… Get closer,” Lena said, her voice dripping with excitement. She extended a hand out. An invitation. Her crimson lips broke into possibly one of the most beautiful smiles Kara had ever seen on a person… Kara had seen her smile before, but not like this… This was different. This was full of happiness, excitement, ecstasy, vulnerability. It was completely genuine.

Kara silently took a few stiff steps forward, moving so she was next to Lena. She looked down at the city, wondering how the woman next to her managed to be more beautiful that the skyline of Rome at night… Kara tried to keep her attention on the buildings below, but it kept wavering to the woman next to her.

She was standing so close to her, but they were just enough distance apart that it didn’t seem too close. Lena’s gaze was locked on Rome, but Kara found her eyes drifting from the city over to Lena. Kara wanted to talk to her. See who she was with all these walls temporarily down. She wanted to get to know the real Lena Luthor; To make a connection…

No.

Now was not the time for this… There would never be a time for _this_.

Kara couldn’t be doing this… She couldn’t be trying to find some sort of relationship with this woman; friendship or anything else. This was her job… she couldn’t get attached. Lena- and anyone else involving the Immortals –was completely off limits.

Lena Luthor wasn’t who Kara thought she was. Just because she was showing herself here didn’t mean she’d ever show herself like this again. It was a once and a life time moment, and Kara couldn’t let herself get attached to such false hopes. 

Lena was her boss, and the heir to one of the strongest mafia’s in American history to boot. She wasn’t someone Kara should be trying to get close to. Kara built her reputation on perfection. Which also meant professionalism. One of the number one rules in the bodyguard handbook is not to get attached to your client.

Kara looked back at the city, feeling an emotionless glaze pour over her. Her face went sort of blank, and her entire body stiffened. She glanced down at her watch, Lena noticing the movement. “Will the museum be closing soon?” Lena asked, her relaxed posture starting to ebb away. “Yes, in less than an hour. We should call the car, and make our way out.” 

Lena sighed, taking one last look at Rome. “I guess you’re right… Let’s go.” Kara turned and started to lead the way back to the front of the building. She pulled out her phone, calling the driving service to come pick them up. Kara looked at the artwork briefly one last time as they walked through the building.

The car was just pulling up as Kara and Lena went outside, Kara opening the door as usual for Lena. “Did you want to stop somewhere and eat, Ms. Luthor?” Kara glanced back at Lena, who was watching the Palazzo Colonna disappear from view. “I’ll just order room service. We can go back to the hotel.”

Kara could feel each wall building its way back up without even looking at Lena in the back seat. She no longer looked out the window, instead pulling her phone out to text someone. Kara wanted to care so badly. She wanted to talk about how beautiful the museum was, and how much fun it was to walk around with Lena. Kara didn’t, however… It wasn’t her place.

**********

Kara was eating a small bowl of oat meal that she ordered from the hotels menu, reading something off her laptop, when she heard a small knock on the door adjoining her room to Lena’s. Kara paused mid-bite, confused at the noise for a moment. She glanced at the time on her laptop. It wasn’t even 8am yet. Kara was still wearing her Pj’s- a tank top and running shorts –and her glasses.

She quickly pulled her glasses off and tossed them on the night stand next to her bed. Kara instantly regretted it when she realized now she couldn’t see where she was going. Still, that didn’t stop her from blindly stumbling over to the door, and awkwardly unlocking it.

The door opened to Lena, looking as if she was already ready to go. Her top, open leather jacket, velvet choker, and sunglasses resting on the top of her head where all black. She even wore black skinny jeans and slide-on shoes. The only thing that didn’t match her raven hair was her usual crimson lipstick, and golden triangle earrings.

That was pretty much all Kara could really see, honestly. She couldn’t make out much of Lena’s facial expression, other than her eyebrow was arching… Maybe?... It was all a blur, and squinting wasn’t helping at all.

“Did you forget the time we said we’d be ready?” Lena asked in a tone that was obviously hiding amusement. Kara’s memory jumped back to the night before, when they got back to the hotel. It was kind of late, and Lena went straight to her room- turning to Kara before closing her door to ask her if she had a time for them to start their touring adventures.

Kara didn’t remember actually giving her a time, saying something along the lines of, “Whenever you’re ready…” But as she thought harder, Kara realized that she also threw in a, “8 sounds like a good time.” She sighed heavily, rubbing her face with both hands. “I’m so sorry, I didn’t realize what time it was.”

In all honesty, Kara hadn’t gone to bed yet. She got to her room after walking the museum with Lena, trying to go straight to bed. Despite her exhaustion, her mind didn’t stop running around in circles. She couldn’t stop thinking about how nice Lena looked exploring that damn gallery. 

So instead Kara decided to read and play around on her laptop until her brain stopped thinking about her boss in such an unprofessional manner…. Unfortunately, that time never came, and now she was stuck trying to find an excuse as to why she was still in her pj’s and squinting at Lena.

“I’ll give you some time to shower and get ready… Just knock when you’re ready,” Lena said, still sounding amused. Kara couldn’t have been sure- because she couldn’t see her –but she could have sworn Lena did a glance around the room behind Kara before taking a step back.

“I’ll hurry,” Kara promised before shutting the door. She did in fact hurry, quickly grabbing her glasses so she could see what she was doing. Kara grabbed a random rolled up outfit in her suit case, physically running to the shower. She didn’t even wait for it to get warm before jumping in, speed washing her hair and body before jumping back out less than 5 minutes later.

Kara was already dressed before she realized that she wasn’t wearing her normal suit and tie. She almost paused to take a moment to change, but her guilt over making Lena wait pushed her to just ignore the informal outfit.

The last thing Kara did was pull her hair up into a very messy, wet bun before knocking on Lena’s adjoining door. Lena opened it within a few seconds. Now that Kara had her contacts in, she could see the playful smirk on her face.

Lena looked Kara up and down, obviously wanting to comment on her outfit. It was a pair of black high tops, high-wasted jeans, and a hoodie that was completely black except its yellow hood and a thick yellow stripe around each bicep.

“You look nice,” Lena’s eyes slowly made their way back up to Kara’s face, which was now crimson in embarrassment… She should have just taken the extra time to change. “If it’s not an appropriate uniform I can change, I have some extra-“ Kara started, but Lena suddenly cut her off. “No, it’s okay. We should get going before things get too busy.

Lena gestured for Kara to follow her into her room, exiting into the hallway. Kara tried her best not to anxiously bite her lip, anxiety buzzing high in her chest. She felt awkward in ‘civilian’ clothing. It didn’t help that Lena kept smirking at her. Kara was grateful Lena hadn’t seen her in her glasses, because then she probably wouldn’t have heard the end of it.

The two women made their way down to the hotel lobby, Lena pulling her phone out. “I’ll call us a car.” She was about to dial the number when Kara quickly said, “Uh, no- actually if I could do something.” Lena looked confused, pausing in her typing.

Kara veered off towards the front desk, talking to the woman who was working. Lena stood back some ways away, listening to the indistinctive conversation. She watched Kara nod gratefully, taking what looked to be a set of keys before trotting back over to her.

Lena only looked more confused, raising an eyebrow high. Kara lifted the keys a little, holding them on the tip of her index finger. “I got us our own car for the day… Now we don’t have to call someone and wait every time we want to go somewhere.” Kara gave a small smiling, hoping that Lena didn’t mind her making such decisions.

There was a brief pause where Lena processed what Kara was saying, looking from the keys to Kara’s face. “… You know how to drive European cars?” A strand of hair fell out of Lena’s sunglasses into her confused face. Both the piece of hair and her bosses odd look made Kara giggle a little.

“I do, actually. I learned when I first started working in Europe, because I was told I’d be driving some of my clients around occasionally.” Lena seemed to understand, finally nodding in agreement. Kara smiled in gratitude, turning and leading the way to where the hotels rental cars were.

The hospitality worker had given Kara they key to a navy blue BMW. It wasn’t too expensive looking; just nice enough to show that the driver of such a car had a decent amount of money. Kara gave the car a quick inspection before opening the passenger door for Lena, who softly thanked her as she ducked in.

As Kara started the car, adjusting the seat to her tall height, she pulled up the directions to their first stop; the Colosseum… Kara had planned out 5 days’ worth of sight-seeing for her and Lena. All of the places they were going to see were in Rome, so they didn’t have to travel very far.

Today was solely set aside for the Colosseum. It was a cool morning, so as Kara pulled up to the massive parking lot she wasn’t surprised to see it wasn’t even a quarter of the way full. The two women got out of the BMW, Lena looking up at the massive ruins with wide eyes.

“This place is a lot bigger than I thought it was going to be,” Lena admitted in a voice full of awe. Kara smirked behind her boss, also looking up at the Colosseum. “This was the first place I went to see when I had some time off from my first client in Italy,” Kara said as she started to walk around Lena so she could lead the way to the ticket booth.

She asked for two tickets from a nice looking woman, but when she went to pay Lena snuck up from behind her and swiped her credit card before Kara could. When Kara turned to look at her, giving her a disapproving look, Lena gave her a mischievous smirk.

“I pay, you give me the tour,” Lena said in an oddly playful voice. Kara narrowed her eyes, but she agreed with a huff and an, “okay…” So, that’s exactly what she did. Taking the two tickets that were being handed to the girls, Kara led the way towards the Colosseum.

They started off by walking around the base of the building. It looked 3 stories high from the outside, each level incredibly tall. The arching doorways were beautiful, but were blocked off by a fence, so you couldn’t officially go inside. Lena looked into the shadowy hallway, trying to see as much of the ruins as possible.

“We’re allowed to go through the bottom story onto the arena, and up to the second story stands,” Kara commented as she watched Lena looking through the bars with a curious look. “This is so cool!” Lena practically squealed, asking Kara to take her further inside.

Kara took Lena around the building completely before leading them through the main archway, which went directly into the arena. Only half of the sandy flooring was there, the rest of it removed so that you could see down into the warrior and animal holding area.

Lena leaned against the railing that kept anyone from falling down into the pit, studying the half fallen walls that outline rooms and hallways below them. “I wonder what it would have been like to be a gladiator,” Lena wondered aloud.

“I’d imagine it’d be painful… Constantly fighting, trying to earn their freedom. They were mostly slaves who were turned into entertainment by their captors,” Kara replied with a shrug. She looked down into the deep Hypogeum. Kara could see Lena turn her head to look at her in her peripheral, seemingly surprised by this information.

“I honestly forgot about that part of history… Why does everyone have to have such a dark past?” She sighed and leaned her chin against a hand. “It adds to an interesting back story?” Kara offered, not entirely sure what to say. Lena snorted through her nose, glancing over at Kara again.

“Do you have a dark back story?” Lena asked in a joking tone. For a moment Kara’s mind flashed back to her time in the military. She’d done lots of things that she’d thought were right in the moment. Now that she looks back on those memories, however, she’s filled with guilt and regret.

“Oh, yeah, I’ve got the darkest back stories of them all!... But that’s for some other time,” Kara said, matching Lena’s joking manner. She stood up straight, no longer leaning against the railing. “Let’s go upstairs. The view is beautiful.” The excited look returned to Lena’s face, nodding vigorously. 

Kara led Lena through the Colosseum and up a steep flight up stairs. The second story was basically just high stands where people used to sit back in the day. Now they were blocked off so people couldn’t try and sit in them.

The wind blew heavily this high up, and the clear blue skies meant it was very sunny. The tall walls didn’t do anything to block the sun, considering there were numerous arch ways that just let all the light and wind through. Kara squinted in the bright sunlight, trying to ignore the slightly painful burn. It didn’t help that the wind really dried out her contacts.

“Oh, here,” Lena said, noticing Kara’s scrunched up face. She turned and grabbed the small purse she had been carrying around the entire time. Lena started to dig around in it for a moment before pulling out a spare pair of sunglasses. They had an incredibly dark tint, and looked just like Lena’s reading glasses, Kara noticed.

Kara thanked her boss and took the glasses, slipping them onto her face. “Do you always carry around two pairs of sunglasses?” Kara casually teased. Lena smirked, giving a small shrug as she slipped on her own sunglasses. “I guess I just forgot that they were in my purse… Do you always take your glasses off when you’re answering the door?”

A deep warmth spread across Kara’s cheeks instantly, realizing that Lena could totally tell she couldn’t see her earlier this morning. Her cheeks glowed bright red as she turned away from Lena, looking out across the arena. “I just don’t like people seeing me in my glasses,” Kara pouted. Lena laughed musically, throwing her head back as she did.

“Hey, if you get to see me looking like a mess, I get to see you just the same way… The pajamas were cute, though,” Lena goaded a little bit more, only worsening Kara’s blushing cheeks. Now her ears were turning red, and her chest under her hoodie felt like it was on fire. 

Kara silently reprimanded herself for not thinking to put a robe or something on before answering the damn door. She had no idea why she thought it was acceptable to open the door connecting her and her _bosses_ room. It was stupid that she’d been so surprised to see Lena, as if expecting someone else to be in the other room.

Lena continued to giggle, obviously enjoying making her bodyguard get all bashful. She didn’t tease anymore, however, allowing Kara to get her flushed cheeks under control. They continued to walk all around the Colosseum, despite the biting wind.

There were some more people starting to gather into the ruins, the walkways getting busier. Kara was paying attention to a group of younger adults that were loudly walking past them, her eyes hard behind the borrowed sunglasses.

She was so distracted by watching the strangers pass by, her back turned to the arena below, that she didn’t process what Lena was doing until it was too late. “Smile!” Lena’s voice called from beside Kara, a phone with the camera turned towards her coming into her line of sight.

Lena took the picture quickly; Kara’s own stunned face looking right back at her while Lena smiled beautifully wide. “Hey!” Kara said in surprised disgruntlement. Lena didn’t even pay her disagreement any mind, going back to look at the picture she just took. “Awe, you weren’t smiling… Oh well, it’s still a good picture.”

Kara huffed, rolling her eyes. The picture wasn’t a big deal; she just didn’t like being surprised like that. Lena continued to smirk, looking at Kara to see if she was going to say anything. When she didn’t, Lena turned to look down at the time on her phone. “Want to go get something to eat, then maybe we could drive around and you can show me the city?”

That sounded like a fun idea, so Kara agreed without hesitation. “I know a really good hole in the wall we can go to… Unless you wanted something nicer.” Kara added the last part quickly, realizing that Lena might be used to fine dining. “You’re in a hoodie and jeans, I don’t think a nice restaurant’s going to be the best idea. I’m up for wherever you want to go.”

Lena mirrored Kara’s grin, an odd amount of happiness filling Kara’s chest knowing that she was actually able to enjoy this job- even if she wasn’t allowing herself to fulfill her desire to befriend the mysterious Lena Luthor.

The two women made their way down to the car park, Kara driving them through the winding streets of Rome to a tiny corner restaurant that looked like it could have been someone’s house. Kara parked in a small alley, opening the car door for Lena before taking her across the street to the restaurant.

As soon as Kara walked through the door, a portly looking old man in a chef’s outfit suddenly yelled out, “Karaaaa!” He threw his hands up in excitement, smiling wide. A few other people came hurrying down stairs and out of the kitchen when they heard the name, all of them repeating the chef’s exclamation in the same way.

“Hey, Anthony! How is everyone? It’s been forever!” Kara greeted the group with just as much vigor. She didn’t bother holding her full happiness back, even with her boss watching her. The chef, Anthony, came hurrying out from the kitchen. Kara met him halfway, giving him the biggest hug she could muster. Anthony smacked her back so hard it knocked the air out of Kara’s lungs.

Everyone else who’d come down to see Kara also gave her hugs, everyone talking at once. Lena watched from a distance, pure shock on her face as she watched Kara juggle over 5 conversations all at once. Kara had to physically remind herself that she wasn’t alone, and to introduce the woman she’d brought with her.

“Everyone, I’d like you to meet my new boss; Lena,” Kara beamed, extending a hand towards Lena, who still looked extremely shocked and confused at what was going on. Saying Lena’s first name allowed felt unfamiliar on Kara’s tongue. There was a tingling sensation that passed through her whole body as a mixture of worry over the informal title, and odd amount of enjoyment from saying the name ‘Lena’ engulfed Kara.

Lena didn’t seem to really notice the lack of ‘Ms. Luthor’- or at least didn’t show her attention to such a small detail –the Italian family swarming her with hugs just like they hugged Kara. “Any friend of Kara’s is a friend of ours!” Anthony bellowed happily.

“Come and sit, Kara,” a matronly looking woman whose name was Natalia said, gesturing for Kara and Lena to sit at a large table in the center of the empty restaurant. Lena sat down kind of stiffly, still looking a little overwhelmed as everyone continued to talk all at once.

Eventually they all dispersed to the kitchen, Anthony claiming that he knew exactly what Kara and Lena wanted without even giving them a menu. The two women were left alone in the dining area, a heavy silence befalling them. Lena looked hilariously disheveled from all the hugging, her perfect hair frazzled and her clothing wrinkled.

“How uh… How do they know you so well?” Lena asked, trying to casually fix her hair. Kara smiled wide at the memory of her first time at this small little restaurant. “I found this place while working for my first client in Rome. I came here to eat almost every day the entire time I was in the area- which was a couple of weeks combined… At one point some delinquents in the neighborhood tried to rob this place. I chased them off, and ever since then Anthony’s considered me family.”

Lena’s eyebrows rose high in surprise, glancing over towards the kitchen. “I’ve never seen strangers have such a strong bond like that… It’s very admirable.” For a moment Lena looked jealous, the corners of her mouth dipping into a frown.

Kara watched her stare at the kitchen for a long moment before saying, “Well we’re just going to have to come here some more, so you can be family, too.” Professionalism be damned, Kara gave Lena a large, genuine smile. Lena looked taken aback for a moment before returning the smile.

It reminded Kara of the night before, when they were in the gardens overlooking Rome. Her head hurt as she struggled to maintain that stubbornly built wall that separated her true self and her work self. She could smile and pretend that Lena wasn’t her boss just this once- only for a moment… Then, it was back to keeping herself safely distanced from Lena.

Anthony came back with some amazing smelling plates of food, setting them in front of Kara and Lena. He spoke a little about what they were, giving Kara’s shoulder a friendly pat before leaving the two women alone to eat. The meal was amazing, and Kara made sure to leave a big cash tip on the table before they left- despite Lena paying with her card.

Kara and Lena went back into the rented BMW, Kara deciding to blindly drive around Rome for almost the rest of the day. She showed Lena a few cool places she knew of, but for the most part they just enjoyed the car ride.

Once it started to get dark, and the night life of Rome started to get busy, Kara decided to start making their way back to the hotel. Lena looked tired, obviously still struggling with her stubborn jet lag. Kara could also feel herself drifting, considering she hadn’t slept at all the night before.

Before Lena went into her room, Kara quickly said, “I’ll make sure I’m ready by 8 tomorrow.” Lena looked back at Kara, her face splitting into a sleepy smile. “Good… You should wear something casual again. You look good.” With that, she went into her room.

For the rest of the week Kara split up their tourism between 4 more days. On the second day they visit multiple historical sites; the Pantheon, Centro Storico, and Piazza Navona. The Pantheon was beautiful, with a large dome and circular room. The neighborhood of Centro Storico made it feel like Kara and Lena were back in time- minus the small market that seemed to be held in a beautiful plaza with a massive fountain. They visited Piazza Navona last, walking through the chilly night air for a little bit before calling it a night.

On the third day they visited St. Peter’s Basilica. It was a massive building with classic architecture that put everything Kara and Lena had seen up to this point to shame. Words could not describe the beauty and detail that went into such a place. It took them almost the entire day to tour all of it. They only took a break to go back to Anthony’s restaurant for the third time that week, getting surprised with another amazing dish.

On the fourth day it was a perfect day to go visit the landscape gardens of the Villa Borghese. They spent the entire day in the fresh air, Lena taking a ton of pictures of all the beautiful foliage. At one point Kara had wandered over to an odd clock that stood on a tiny island in a middle of this shallow pond. There was a small wooden bridge connecting the island to the main path. 

While Kara was looking up at the clock she heard Lena say something to her. When she turned to look she just managed to get in a quick smile before her picture was taken by Lena once again. “You look really nice when you smile,” Lena said softly when Kara walked back over, causing Kara to blush.

On the fifth and final day, Kara took Lena to see the Trevi Fountain. It was a massive fountain with a beautiful rocky scene carved into white stone. There were massive statues of gods and rearing horses emerging from the rocks that were expertly crafted. They only took a half day to explore this part of Rome, unfortunately having to go back to the hotel to pack up their stuff and leave for a late flight back to the states. 

As they were leaving the hotel, Kara back in her formal suit and Kevlar vest, both of them stopped to look back at the luxury building. Kara was almost sad to go, feeling as if their time in Rome would feel like a dream as soon as they touched American soil. Like things would completely change, and would never truly go back to this moment here and now.

Reluctantly, Kara turned her back on the resort, climbing into the SUV. “National City, here we come…” Lena mumbled with a disappointed sigh, visibly starting to armor herself once again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have no idea the true layout to all the places Kara and Lena visited... I just looked at pictures online, so sorry if I got some things wrong.
> 
> Stay safe <3  
> -Aries


	4. Chapter 4: The Emerald Dragons

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kara had to fight to protect Lena from an attempted assassination by a rival gang.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, just a heads up that this chapter's going to get very gruesome! I've centered and put '***' before/after all of the bloody/super violent bits so that anyone who doesn't enjoy that stuff can skip right over them. If you do choose to read the centered sections, please read at your own discretion.  
> Otherwise, enjoy!
> 
> Hope everyone had a good weekend  
> -Aries

It’s been almost two months since Lena and Kara returned to National City. Since then Kara’s been traveling all around the city with Lena, protecting her as she does business deals in regards to both L-Corp and the Immortals. Their vacation in Rome seemed like it happened years ago, Kara never again getting to see Lena in such a fun, relaxed setting. 

If anything, things seemed to be getting increasingly tense. There was currently a gang rivalry between the Immortals and a slightly smaller mafia family called the Emerald Dragons; Kara learned that they were a Japanese gang that had started around the same time as the Immortals, but didn’t take off nearly as fast as them.

Tempers were starting to get higher than ever, and Lillian was worried that there would be another violent war between the Immortals and Emerald Dragons. This meant that Kara had to stay incredibly vigilant in her job. She was with Lena constantly- escorting her to and from L-Corp anytime she went somewhere –and made sure no one unfamiliar got anywhere close to her.

Currently they were driving in the car on their way to a business brunch where they were to meet with a potential client that was in need of protection against the rouge thieves that hung in their part of National City. The radio was quietly playing as Lena was applying her signature crimson lipstick in a pocket mirror in the back seat.

Kara was texting a quick message to some of her coworkers- Lilian allowed Kara to get some help from a few Immortal officers, Finn and Ammarah included, so she could run an entire protection detail for Lena when she was in heavy crowds or needed an extra hand –constantly glancing up from her phone to look around at where they were.

As soon as they pulled into the parking lot of a very homely looking breakfast restaurant named The Big Bistro. Kara did her usual routine of getting out of the car first, scanning the area as she walked around the car to open the door for Lena. Nothing looked out of the ordinary as Kara watched with a stern look, closing the door behind her client.

Lena took a second to instruct the driver that they’d be back in less than two hours, the driver nodding before pulling away to park and wait for them. Kara walked in front of Lena, entering The Big Bistro and telling the hostess they were there to meet someone named Glenda Hatfield.

The hostess took them to a table where a lone woman sat. She was older, maybe in her late 40’s, with long grey and brown hair, and a very worn but cute looking pantsuit. 

It was kind of obvious that she couldn’t afford anything nicer, the suit considerably cheaper than Lena’s blouse and dress pants. When she looked up at Lena and Kara walking towards her, Kara could see the intimidation in her eyes.

Mrs. Hatfield stood quickly, outstretching her hand to Lena. “Ms. Luthor, it’s a pleasure.” Lena had her usual authoritative look on her face, but she broke it to give Mrs. Hatfield a smile. Both Lena and Kara sat down, a waitress coming up to them moments later. “Would you guys like anything to eat?” The waitress asked in a sweet southern accent.

Lena ordered a coffee and some toast, Mrs. Hatfield asking for a small plate of hash-browns. Kara declined the offer politely. As soon as the waitress left, Lena and Mrs. Hatfield went down to business. Kara listened silently, scanning around The Big Bistro. At first nothing seemed off to Kara, returning her gaze to Glenda who was talking nervously.

“…And I understand we can’t afford the price that you asked for, but I was hoping that maybe we could strike up a deal- a mixture of money and goods so that you and your… Uh… Crew can get their fair share.” Glenda looked nervous, picking at a rolled up piece of straw paper.

As Lena paused to think for a moment, Kara did another casual scan of the restaurant. A few people getting up caught her attention, but they seemed to be a family getting ready to leave. With them out of her view, Kara was able to see a few tables past the family was a lone man in a dark leather jacket. He obviously averted his gaze when he saw Kara looking at him.

A rush of chills rolled down Kara’s spine, her entire body tensing as her gaze stayed on the man. He didn’t look back over to their table, sipping his coffee and texting on his phone. She stared at him for a long while, blood rushing in her ears as adrenaline started to pump through her. All the red flags in her mind were going off.

“Mrs. Hatfield,” Kara said, tearing her gaze away from the man. Lena stopped talking abruptly, looking surprised at Kara’s sudden voice. Glenda looked anxiously to Kara, as if she was a student being spoken to by the principle. “Did you come alone?” Kara stared hard at Glenda, her blue eyes piercing through her.

“I… Uh… Yes?” Glenda looked awkwardly confused, glancing around the restaurant, trying to see what Kara was talking about. “Is everything okay?” Lena asked, sitting forward a little to look Kara in the face. “I advise we call the car and leave,” Kara instructed firmly, her eyes going back to where the man was sitting.

He was gone, only the half drunken coffee cup left. Kara felt a rush of panic, glancing around the restaurant. She just managed to catch his leather clad back leaving the restaurant. He knew his cover was blown, and he was either running for it, or going to grab back up.

“We’re almost done here,” Lena said in back of her, but Kara knew that they didn’t have any time left. They needed to leave now. “Ms. Luthor.” Kara’s voice was hard as she turned her piercing gaze onto Lena, who visibly tensed. She turned to Glenda, saying, “Mrs. Hatfield, we’ll have to reschedule. For now, I’ll think about what you’ve got to offer the Immortals.”

Kara was up before the others could exchange a good-bye, having to fight her instinct to grab Lena by the arm and drag her out of The Big Bistro. Lena stood and grabbed her purse, allowing Kara to quickly lead her out and to where the car was parked.

Looking all around the parking lot, Kara couldn’t see the man or any suspicious car. That didn’t mean they were safe, however. Kara pulled her phone out as she strode to the car, calling Ammarah, her second in command. Ammarah answered with a cheery tone after a few rings, “Hey, what’s up?”

“Get everyone assembled and ready to go to the Point Loma safe house,” Kara instructed quickly, opening the door for Lena to jump into the back of the Chevy Impala. “Oh, okay… What’s going on?” Kara could hear Ammarah quickly getting up and shuffling through something in the background. Kara practically threw herself into the passenger seat, instructing the driver on where to take them.

“There was a guy watching us and I’m certain he’s got buddies. I don’t want to lead them back to L-Corp, there’s civilians there that could get hurt. Text me when everyone’s ready. We’re leaving now.” Kara hung up the phone, glancing back to Lena who looked mildly panicked. “I need you to do exactly as I say until I know you’re safe, do you understand?”

Lena held eye contact with Kara, her eyes wide as she nodded. “I trust you,” she said almost inaudibly. Kara turned around in her seat, pulling out the gun that she always kept holstered under her left arm. She checked the magazine, even though she knew it was full of ammunition. She had nine shots with this gun, and a spare magazine under her other arm that held another nine.

Kara racked a bullet into the chamber of the pistol and turned on the safety before putting the pistol back under her arm. They didn’t need it quite yet, but she needed to be ready for anything. The driver drove as quickly as he could through the city traffic, looking as if he was about to soil his pants. 

There didn’t seem to be anyone following them that Kara could tell as she glanced through the side mirror of the car. She swallowed hard, shifting stiffly in her seat. Nothing happened for about ten minutes, and for a moment Kara wondered if they managed to get out of the restaurant fast enough, and shook off their shadow right away.

As Kara glanced through the side mirror once again her phone started to ring, the noise causing the driver to jump slightly in his seat. Kara looked down at the ID, seeing it was Lillian. That was the last thing she needed; to be talking on the phone while trying to pay attention to something as important as this.

Regardless, Kara had to answer the phone, knowing Lillian would just keep calling. Right as she put the phone to her ear and said, “Hello?” She noticed it. Two figures on motorcycles that looked at their car and suddenly pulled out of the alley they sat in, going after them. Kara felt her blood run cold, looking in the side mirror again.

“…Llo? Hello?! Hey, I’m talking to you!” Lillian’s voice screamed in Kara’s ear. Oh, that’s right. She answered her phone. “Drive faster,” Kara instructed the driver before putting the phone back to her ear. “Lillian, I can’t talk right now,” Kara said sternly as she turned in her seat to glance directly behind them.

Right as she did that, a large tinted SUV-type car turned onto their street, aggressively speeding up to catch up with the two motorcycles obviously trailing them. With the confidence of their larger compatriot, the two figures on the bike reached into their jackets to pull something out.

Kara was moving before she could think. She dropped the phone and undid her seatbelt so she could lunge to the back seat to grab Lena. Her grip was so hard on Lena’s shoulder she was afraid it was going to break in her hand. 

“Lena, get down!” Kara yelled, shoving Lena sideways so she was laying across the bench seat. Right as she did this, countless bullets sprayed into the back of the Impala. Glass shattered, and Lena instinctively screamed as she held her arms over her head to protect herself from the flying shards.

Kara’s lower body was kneeling on the center console between the front seats, so she was able to duck her upper body down almost to the floor. Glass hit her back like small pieces of hail, a ton of it landing on the seat and floor boards in the back. Kara could hear the driver yelling in panic, ducking forward so his head was almost touching the steering wheel.

When the bullets stopped, Kara shoved herself back into the passenger seat, keeping her head low. “I said drive faster!” Kara yelled realizing they weren’t even going 50 miles per hours. She grabbed the drivers knee and pushed it down hard, his foot flooring the peddle. The engine of the Impala roared as gas flooded it, the small car quickly picking up speed.

The driver continued to yell some sort of nonsense as he swerved around others cars, and even drove on the wrong side of the road. They were driving on a pretty straight street, and most of the lights were green, but up ahead Kara could see one of the lights was about to turn red.

She cussed under her breath, glancing back at the panicked Lena, then to the trio of vehicles that were easily keeping up with them. This driver was no expert, and he kept slowing down when he got closer to the slower traffic. Kara gritted her teeth, unable to hear much over the roaring of blood in her ears.

One of the motorcycle riders suddenly sped up, moving to the driver’s side of the car. They pulled their automatic weapon up, pointing is straight at the driver and Kara. She managed to yell, “Crap!” Before having to throw her large body to the floor, compressing herself between her seat and the glovebox.

***The driver wasn’t so lucky. He gave off one last scream, seeing the barrel of a gun pointed at him before the bullets reigned. Kara didn’t look up, covering her head with her arms when the glass from the driver side window shattered all over the place. She didn’t see the driver get hit, but she could hear and feel it.

There were multiple sickening thuds, and a wet mist that sprayed onto her. She could instantly smell the iron in the air, the scent sending her back to her days in combat. Kara didn’t look up until the bullets stopped. She really wished she hadn’t when she saw the dead driver.

Now, however, wasn’t the time to be staring at a mangled corpse. Kara could hear their vehicle starting to pick up heavy speed, realizing that the drivers leg was now dead weight against the car peddle, pushing it completely to the floor. Kara continued to grunt cusswords under her breath as she pulled out her pistol. 

She could only blindly shoot out the driver’s window, hoping to either hit or scare the motorcycle off so she could sit up and steer the veering car. She got five shots off, the noise of the gun firing defining in the small vehicle. For a moment Kara casually thought that she should really invest in a silencer or something of the sort.

Once she could hear the motorcycle’s engine get a good distance away, Kara jumped up into the passenger seat. She grabbed the steering wheel and veered around a row of stopped cars just before she realized why they were stopped. By then it was too late, their car plowing through the red light.

Kara felt herself holding her breath, hoping that maybe they could slide right through the traffic. Her hoping gave them no luck, however. Kara heard Lena scream, looking over just in time to see an absurdly large pickup truck coming right towards them. She realized she wasn’t wearing a seat belt milliseconds before the impact.

The pickup truck hit them on the front passenger side of the car, like an off-centered T-bone. Kara felt her upper body start to whip to the left, while her legs remained stuck in an awkward position between her seat and the dashboard. Her door caved in, the metal making a terrible noise as it crunched and bent, slamming all the way up the right side of Kara’s body.

She felt all of that right before they started to spin. The truck had hit them just right so they both started to spin in an odd, counter-clockwise direction. The truck flew off in some random direction that Kara could see before she squeezed her eyes shut, her entire body laying across the center console and the drivers lap.

Kara braced herself as she felt them spinning for what felt like multiple minutes, but was in reality only maybe 5. Lena was screaming the entire time, and Kara silently hoped that she was still buckled in. The last thing they needed was for Lena to go flying out of the window.

The car stopped with a gut wrenching impact, Kara feeling her body bump and smack into multiple other things before everything finally stopped. She groaned low in her chest, feeling as if she was going to throw up from all the spinning. 

Her entire body was groaning in pain with her, but her right side was practically screaming. Her hip and shoulder had taken the brunt of the impact, but she could feel a shooting pain going down her entire right side.

Regardless of the pain, Kara had to keep moving. She shuffled off of the dead drivers lap back into what was left of the passenger seat. She looked back to see Lena covered in glass, but relatively unharmed. She was breathing fast, still laying down across the back seat.

The sound of motorcycle engines and screeching tires told Kara that their battle wasn’t over. Panting heavily and wincing in pain, Kara bent down to grab where her gun had fallen on the floor. “Stay…. Oh hell… Stay in the car, Lena,” Kara grunted out, feeling her ribs shift in unnatural ways as she outstretched her arm for the gun. They were definitely broken.

Gnashing her teeth Kara started to climb out of her bent and mangled passenger window, seeing that the driver side of the car was where the attackers were coming from. Kara dragged herself completely through before unceremoniously flopping to the ground. Now her hip was starting to burn like someone was stabbing a hot poker into it.

With a grunt and multiple more cusswords Kara stood and crouched down behind the oddly angled front passenger tire. They had been stopped by hitting a sturdy telephone pole head on, and almost the entire passenger side of the car was messed up. The only thing that didn’t look too dented or caved in was the back door, where Lena remained hiding inside.

Kara couldn’t see past the car, not daring to shoot through it and over Lena, but she could definitely see under it. She bent forward on her knees, her breath wheezing as she peaked under the car. A pair of leather motorcycle boots was walking towards them, the barrel of their owner’s gun just barely visible.

Kara quickly aimed her pistol and waited until the motorcycle rider’s right foot hit the ground. As soon as it did she pulled the trigger, not even flinching at the _BANG_. The bullet tore straight through the figures ankle, sending them straight to the ground. The recoil made her injured arm burn, but that didn’t stop Kara.

The motorcycle helmet had a chrome visor, so Kara couldn’t see the surprised look on the figures face when their head hit the ground and they saw her peaking under the car, but she could see their body tense just before she pulled the trigger again. This time the bullet went through the visor and into their face.

Kara could hear the dead rider’s partners cussing and scattering, along with the surrounding civilian’s. Kara took this moment to stumble over to the back passenger tire. She didn’t want to make the same mistake as the rider.

A man in an oddly professional suit and a colorful Chinese theater mask came running at a wide angle around the car. Kara lifted her gun before the man could, hitting him right in the throat with her shot. In one motion the man started to stumble sideways, his arms limp, as he tipped over onto the ground. His mask fell off as he choked and gagged, fear and surprise all over his face.

Kara had one more bullet to fire before she had to reload, the ammunition already sitting in the chamber. The smell of blood and gunpowder clung heavily in her nose as she glanced around the tailgate of the car. She was able to vaguely see four figures in total before having to throw herself backwards onto her butt, a bullet striking the back of the car right where Kara had been.

She was gasping for air as she shifted to lean against the back tire, Kara’s ribs making it feel like she was breathing through a straw. She realized she could see the reflection of the scene behind her through the glass window of the shops on the side of the street.

Over the top of the small, crushed Impala, Kara could see the second motorcycle rider move up quickly. She quickly bent down to look under the car with a grunt, but realized that the second rider learned the lesson that the first one didn’t. They stayed in front of the car tire, so Kara couldn’t see their feet.

They were heading for Lena, so Kara moved to reach her before they did. She grabbed the slightly mangled back door and started to yank it open, the hinges slightly bent and non-compliant. She managed to wedge it open, using her shoulder to push between the door and its frame, groaning in pain as her injured shoulder burned agonizingly.

Lena looked over at Kara with huge eyes, freezing for a moment before realizing the person trying to get into the car was just her body guard. To help her, Lena put her feet against the door and started to push with all her might. The door started to fully open, just enough for Kara to get her body through.

Kara looked up just in time to see the top of the motorcycle helmet of the second rider, who was crouching and just about to open the door on the other side. In one quick movement Kara grabbed the waste of Lena’s pants and yanked her entire body towards her. She jumped forward, hovering her whole form over her, protecting Lena’s head with her torso.

She managed to get her pistol up right as the door opened, shooting right into the visor of the helmet as it peaked through the door. The figures head lurched back, their body crumbling backwards with the momentum.

Kara could feel Lena gripping onto the front of her shirt, her legs curled up and pressing a little painfully against her hips, laying in an upwards fetal position. And thank god for that, because just as Kara was about to move them backwards behind the car again, three gunshots behind them rang off.

It felt as if Kara had an aluminum baseball bat slam against her back three consecutive times. All of the air was knocked out of her lungs, and her stomach churned with the pain. She clenched her jaw, trying to fight the tears that threatened to build in her eyes.

The bullets stayed lodged in Kara’s bulletproof vest, having pierced a few centimeters in, but not hitting her flesh. Still, however, the force of the shots was enough to make Kara have to pause for a moment, gasping for air.

She was out of bullets, so it wasn’t like Kara could just turn around and shoot at the person behind them. She was about to move to charge at the man and hope to pistol whip him before he got any more rounds off when suddenly Lena moved under her. 

For a terrifying moment Kara thought Lena was trying to get out from under her, but when she heard the almost quite pops of a small caliber gun, she realized that it was Lena shooting under her. Kara looked back to see the man holding his chest, stumbling backwards. Lena apparently had a gun hidden somewhere in the purse next to her all this time.

This was the moment that Kara needed. She bolted off of Lena and rushed the injured man. He was so preoccupied with his wounds that he didn’t have time to stop Kara. She grabbed the hand holding his weapon, aiming it up forcefully and pushing his finger to press into the trigger.

One moment the top of the man’s head was there, the second it wasn’t. He collapsed to the pavement, a shock expression still on his face as his mask fell off. Kara didn’t have time to pause and take in the grizzly sight, turning around just in time to see the colorful face of another target.

The figure obviously panicked, tensing up as they fired multiple shots way to the left of Kara. She didn’t miss, shooting two bullets into the person’s chest and neck. There was one more figure left, but Kara couldn’t find them right away.

Lena was kneeling behind the car, looking panicked, but alert. Kara ran to crouch next to her, protectively surrounding her with her body. “Are you okay?” She asked Lena through panting breath. Lena didn’t have time to answer before the sound of buckshot hitting the wedge open door next to them made both of them flinch.

Kara ducked under the door, doing what she did at the very start of the fire fight; she shot the figures foot, then shot him with her last two bullets in the chest and neck area. They were kind of unnecessary, considering when the person fell, they cracked the side of their head completely open on the pavement.***

There was finally complete silence around them, save for Kara and Lena’s heavy breathing. Kara took the risk of moving away from Lena to check all around them, picking up her personal hand gun off the ground and reloading it. She pointed it ahead over her, checking everywhere she’d seen the figures before feeling confident that there was no one left.

Kara moved back to Lena, who still held a tiny six shot revolver. “Are you okay?” Kara repeated herself, reaching out with her uninjured arm to offer Lena a hand up. She stood, looking around with spooked eyes. “I’m okay… I think… You’re bleeding?” Lena reached out towards Kara’s head, and gently touched a wet patch on the side of her head.

Kara winced away, gently grabbing Lena’s hand and removing it from her wound. “I’ll be fine… We need to go, before more come. Here, we’ll take this car,” She instructed, guiding Lena towards a small zippy looking two door car that was still running, abandoned by its owner in the fire fight.

Lena didn’t have any hesitation, jumping into the passenger seat. Kara tried her best not to wince or show any pain as she slid into the driver seat, taking a second to adjust it. “We need to go to a hospital,” Lena said next to Kara, noticing that she wasn’t putting her full weight on her right hip.

“No. We need to get you to Point Loma. I’ll be fine… I’m more worried about you.” Kara took a moment to look around, trying to get her bearings again. Her head was starting to throb now, and there was a slight ringing in her ears from all the loud noises of the car crash and gun fight.

Once she was able to figure out where to go, Kara gunned it, drifting the car around in a U-turn. Lena cussed in surprise, gripping the ceiling handle for dear life. Kara didn’t relax on the gas, pushing the car to go faster as they tore away from the bloody scene behind them.

She took them out of National City and to the west, to Point Loma- a tiny peninsula in San Diego. There was a safe house right off of Sunset Cliffs Blvd. The drive took about 15 minutes, Kara pushing the speed limit the entire time. She rolled through red lights and didn’t bother stopping at any yield or stop signs.

Kara didn’t let off the gas until she was pulling up to the safe house; a beautiful beach house that was three stories tall, the walls mostly mirrored glass and brick with black accent balconies. Lena had never been to this safe house, her eyebrows raising high on her forehead as she looked up at the home, obviously impressed.

The car pulled into the driveway, and to Kara’s disappointment there was no one else there. Ammarah was supposed to have taken the security group and met them there, but either they were caught up in traffic or they misunderstood Kara.

Regardless, Kara stiffly stood from the car, trying to casually walk as she went around to the other door to open it for Lena. “I still think we need to go to a hospital,” Lena grumbled, able to see the slight limp in Kara’s gate. Kara ignored her, turning and going to the garage door. There was a pin pad next to it, Kara taking a moment to remember and punch in the code.

Instantly the garage door opened, Kara leading the way into the safe house. It was lavishly decorated, and despite its lack of use was oddly clean. They found their way straight to the living room, Lena sitting on the plush leather couch instantly. “Are you sure you’re okay?” Kara asked, trying to see if there was any scratches or bruises on Lena.

“I swear, I’m okay. Just some bumps from the crash. I was laying down for most of it.” She rolled her eyes at Kara, who still didn’t look satisfied. “Let me see your arms,” Kara instructed gruffly, kneeling down with a wince. She kneeled on her good knee, the other leg bent at an odd angle, sticking out to the side.

Lena looked defiant, but gave her arms up for inspection regardless. Kara looked them over, satisfied to only see a few bruises. When she instructed Lena to lift her shirt so she could see her stomach, however, Kara was distressed to see long scratches along her left side and back.

Kara mentally cursed herself, realizing that when she grabbed Lena and pulled her towards her in the car, she dragged her straight through the broken glass she was laying on. “We need to get this cleaned up,” Kara said, her fingertips gently brushing over the scratches with a feather-light touch.

“No, we need to get you-“ Lena started, but Kara didn’t allow her to finish. “There’s a secure phone line here, right? Do you have any idea where it is?” She stood awkwardly, still not putting much pressure on her right hip. Kara had lost her phone in the car crash, figuring it either dropped to the floor or got thrown out the car.

Lena looked angry, her nose flaring and her green eyes darkening. If Kara hadn’t just stared death right in the face multiple times less than an hour ago she would have been afraid, in all honesty. “I don’t… Try finding an office,” Lena growled as she crossed her arms, pouting.

Now wasn’t the time to be getting worried over upsetting Lena. Kara wordlessly walked away, walking around the bottom floor before moving to the second. The house was large, but yet there were few rooms. It was rather open-planned, aside from what looked to be a private office in a back corner of the third floor.

Lena had been right, there was a secure telephone hooked up on the wall of the office. Kara pulled off the wireless receiver, and entered in the memorized phone number of Ammarah. She answered on the second ring. “Hey, are you guys okay?! You’re not answering my texts!” Kara had to take a deep, painful breath, her temper starting to rise.

She’d been thrown around in a car accident, shot at, and now scowled at by her boss for just doing her job. The last thing she needed right now was her second in command to be this stupid-… Kara stopped herself, realizing that none of this was Ammarah’s fault. She wasn’t used to this sort of thing. She was a mafia member, not a trained security officer.

“Ammarah, I need you to get to the Point Loam safe house with everyone. I expected you to be here already. There was a car accident and some shooting. Lena is fine, tell Lillian that she’s only got a few cuts and bruises. I’ll patch her up- If she’ll allow me, that is.” Kara spoke in tense, short sentences, trying not to wheeze too badly. Her ribs were starting to really get to her.

“O-Oh, okay… Yeah, I’ll tell her. Are you alright?” Ammarah sounded shaken by the sudden flow of information. Kara sighed heavily, leaning her sore back against the wall. “Just get here quickly.” With that, Kara hung up. She didn’t even but the phone back in its place on the wall.

Kara slid down to the floor, leaning her head backwards as she squeezed her eyes shut. It was finished. She’d gotten Lena to the safe house, she protected her from the shooters, and she called back up. There was nothing left to do. She could now fully check up on herself.

***Kara pulled off her jacket and shoulder holster, then her bloody, torn up shirt. She stiffly unbuttoned it before shrugging it off. Next was her Kevlar vest. This one was harder to do. Kara reached up with her good arm and pulled the Velcro at the top off both shoulders. Then she loosened the straps on the sides before lifting it with one arm over her head.

She still had to lift up her bad arm, groaning through clenched teeth as she pulled the vest over her head. Now Kara was just in a tank top and her dirt covered pants. Her tank top was just as bloody as her pants, multiple pieces of glass having gotten under her vest and cut up her hips and side.

Kara could see her right shoulder was partially dislocated, the ball of her humerus sticking well above her clavicle. She’d have to reset it before any blood vessels or ligaments were damaged. Kara looked around for anything to bite down on, knowing from experience that setting a dislocated shoulder wasn’t very comfortable.

“What are you looking for?” Lena’s voice came from the doorway, making Kara jump. The jolting motion made her wince, her entire body burning from the movement. “Nothing,” Kara said automatically, looking up at Lena. “Is everything okay?” Kara asked.

Lena frowned down at her, glancing at the blood and discarded clothing. She noticed the three mushroomed bullets in the back of the Kevlar vest. “Kara, I really think we should take you to a hospital.” Lena’s voice was soft and- if Kara knew better –caring. The sound of Kara’s name coming from Lena’s lips was foreign. She’d never said her first name, always calling her ‘Ms. Danvers’ or something similar.

“I can’t leave you here alone, Lena. The others are coming, but they won’t be here for another hour. I’ll be fine, I promise.” Kara looked up at Lena’s unreadable expression. Lena stared at her for a long moment before her face softened. “Let me help. What can I do?”

Kara’s initial reaction was to deny her help, and shoe her away. However, she knew that she was probably going to need some sort of help sooner or later. “Is there something thick I can bite down on around here?” Once again Lena looked like she was going to suggest a hospital visit, but she visibly held her tongue. 

Lena walked around the office for a moment before holding up a pencil. Kara shook her head at the offer, knowing she’d bite right through it. Lena looked around some more before finding a small emergency flashlight. It was thin and long, but the metal looked sturdy enough to withstand Kara’s bite force. 

She nodded, outstretching her good arm to take the offered flashlight. Lena was still reluctant, but walked over and gave it to her before kneeling down next to her. “What else can I do?” She looked Kara all over, noticing her displaced shoulder.

“Grab my wrist, and pull my arm forward with all your might- I’ll pull against you –and then I’ll shift my shoulder back into the socket.” Lena visibly paled, but gently took Kara’s wrist regardless. She paused to allow Kara to place the flashlight in her mouth, Kara taking a deep breath in before nodding to Lena.

The two women pulled against each other, Kara’s shoulder burning as if a red hot knife was being stabbed into it and wiggled around. She bit down on the flashlight as hard as she could, but that didn’t stop the pitiful whimpers and moans that came from deep inside Kara’s chest.

Kara was just about to shift her arm back in, but when she pulled a little harder it caused Lena to lose her grip. Kara’s wrist slipped out of Lena’s hands, and her shoulder slammed back into the wall Kara was leaning on. Indescribable pain shot through Kara’s arm and shoulder as she dropped the flashlight from her mouth. Stars danced brilliantly in her vision as she cried out in pain, gripping her arm to her chest.***

“Oh fuck! Oh my god, Kara, I’m so sorry! Oh my god, holy shit!” Kara felt Lena’s arms wrap around her head, feeling her face press into something soft and warm. Kara realized that Lena was hugging her head to her chest, being careful not to put any pressure on the area’s Kara was most visibly hurt.

Although it didn’t take away the pain, the embrace instantly started to calm Kara down. Her heart stopped pounding, and the muscles that she’d been tensing ever since she spotted the man in The Big Bistro finally relaxed. She hadn’t been hugged like this since she was a young teenager.

Kara kept her injured arm close to herself, but she allowed her left arm to slowly move around to hug Lena. She smelt like fresh vanilla crème and a mixture of berries. It was an incredibly sweet scent that was so distracting that Kara started to forget about her pain.

They sat like that for maybe 2 minutes- Lena gently whispering endless apologies and running gentle fingers through Kara’s hair –but it felt like hours. Eventually the pain started to throb again, Kara having to move away from Lena’s hold. When Lena pulled away, it looked as if she had been crying, her eyes puffy and her cheeks wet.

“Hey,” Kara said softly, “I’ll be okay… Let’s try this one more time, okay?” Lena frowned and furrowed her eyebrows, but nodded. She moved backwards and took Kara’s offered arm once again. Once the dented flashlight was back in Kara’s mouth, they tried once more.

***The pain was almost unbearable, but this time Lena was able to maintain her grip on Kara’s wrist. Kara used her free arm to grip her bicep and yank the arm back into the socket. There was a loud pop, and Kara jolted slightly. 

At first the there was a burning spike of pain before almost everything washed away. There was still a dull throb, but it didn’t hurt nearly as bad as before. Both women were panting, Kara taking the flashlight out of her mouth. In hindsight she probably should have made sure she wasn’t biting down on batteries, but it was too late now.*** 

“That’s much better, thank you,” Kara whispered through her labored breathing. She was so exhausted, she just wanted to lay down right there on the floor and sleep. Still, however, the Immortals had yet to arrive and Lena needed protecting.

“Let’s go downstairs. I can help you up,” Lena said, the confidence coming back to her voice now that she knew Kara wasn’t in as much pain. Kara couldn’t have denied the offered help even if she wanted to; Lena had already wrapped her good arm around her shoulder and started to lift Kara up.

Once she was standing they walked downstairs to the living room together. Lena helped Kara down onto the couch, frowning when Kara winced. “Do you know how close they are? If you could guess.” Lena sat carefully on the coffee table in front of Kara, motioning for Kara to give her her bad leg. The silent request confused Kara, but she did so anyways.

“I’d guess twenty minutes. They’re coming from L-Crop, which is a good distance away and traffic doesn’t help much.” Kara watched Lena gently rub a hand on the outside of her bad thigh, seemingly looking for any glass or obvious break in her leg.

***Lena scooted a little bit forward, carefully grabbing the hem of Kara’s shirt and lifting it up an inch or so to look at the deep purple bruising that was starting to spread around Kara’s hip and ribs. Lena frowned deeply, following the bruising up as she moved the side of the shirt up more.

Kara suddenly grabbed Lena’s wrist when she started to get about mid-rib, both of them locking eyes. “I think you should stop there, ma’am,” Kara said stiffly. Part of Kara felt awkward getting inspected like that, and the other part didn’t want Lena to upset herself more.

“Your ribs are broken,” Lena stated as she furrowed her eyebrows. Kara scoffed, nodding as she leaned back into the couch slowly. “I’m very aware, thank you. I’ll have them looked at once I know you’re safe.” Lena didn’t look satisfied, but she returned her attention to Kara’s pelvis.

“Can you feel any sort of shifting when you walk? Are you numb in your thigh or groin?” Lena’s long fingers gently touched the slightly exposed part on the side of Kara’s hip. Kara tensed, but didn’t shy away. “I can feel everything, but there’s no shifting. I think it’s just bruised.”***

Lena sighed, but allowed Kara to take her leg back, setting her foot on the ground. She moved to sit next to Kara on the couch. She looked as exhausted as Kara felt. “Get some sleep, Ms. Luthor,” Kara suggested. Lena bit her lip in thought before nodding, moving to lay down in a curled up position, her feet facing Kara.

Lena seemed to fall asleep within a few minutes of laying down, her entire body relaxed as her breathing got slower. Kara very slowly stood up and made her way back upstairs to gather the discarded clothing she’d taken off to see all her wounds.

Kara put the clothing back on, but kept the vest off, knowing it’d be too painful to put back on by herself. Kara kept her arm resting against her chest, trying to move her shoulder as little as possible. She definitely was going to need to visit an ER once the Immortals were here.

Once back downstairs, Kara did another walk around the perimeter of the house. She had just gotten to the front of the house when she saw multiple black SUV’s pulling into the driveway. At first Kara’s first thought was the Emerald Dragons, but as soon as she saw Ammarah and Finn jump out, she realized it was her backup.

The group of fifteen Immortals hurried into the safe house rather loudly. Kara met them in the living room, where Lena sat up on the couch. Ammarah took one look at Kara and froze for a second, her eyes going wide. “Oh hell, are you guys okay?” She hurried to Kara, trying to inspect her.

“Why weren’t you here before us?” Kara asked, frowning down at Ammarah, who tensed up at the strict tone. “I… Uh… Your wording was weird… I thought you just wanted us to gather, I was waiting for you to respond to my text before we left.” Finn stepped in, nodding in agreement. “We weren’t sure if you needed us right that second.”

Kara looked between the two officers, the stern look not leaving her face. “When I call you and tell you to get ready for something, that means I need you heading to my location, or the location I told you, as soon as I’ve hung up. Don’t wait for my green light. It’ll just get Lena and everyone else killed. You’re lucky there were only six of them.”

The two officer’s faces blanched. “ _Only_ six?!” Finn said in an exasperated tone. “I’ve been in situations where an entire small army attacked us, but that’s not the point... Let’s hope that’s not the Emerald Dragons next move,” Kara rolled her eyes, “Now stop gawking and start posting people around the perimeter.”

Both of them nodded and moved to instruct people where to go. Kara relaxed slightly, looking to Lena who was watching her from across the room. Again she had an unreadable expression on her face, staring at Kara.

Kara went over to her, making sure she was okay and comfortable. Lena nodded, glancing to the hustle and bustle of the Immortals around her. “I’m going to have you stay here for the next 24 hours. Just to make sure the Emerald Dragon’s don’t try attacking twice in a row.”

Lena frowned at the thought of staying at the safe house for so long, but she didn’t complain. Instead, she gestured down to Kara’s uncomfortable stance, obviously still trying to keep weight off her right leg. “Are you going to go to the hospital now?”

Kara matched Lena’s unamused look, glancing down at her bruised and battered body. She really didn’t want to leave Lena here without her, even though she trusted the Immortals to do a good job protecting her. Still, though, Lena was right. If she waited much longer her ribs would become a serious problem.

“Fine. I’ll go to the hospital.” Kara moved to walk away, intending on going alone. “Finn, go with Kara. She needs someone to assist her,” Lena’s voice called behind Kara’. Finn went straight to Kara’s side with an expectant look, knowing what Lena meant by ‘assist’.

Kara gave another unenthused look towards Lena, who seemed amused by her stubbornness, smirking. “Get a new phone while you’re gone. Text me so I know my baby sitter is safe.” Kara sighed, fighting the urge to roll her eyes at Lena before nodding. “I’ll keep you updated, Ms. Luthor.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know if I need to edit any part of this chapter that seemed too violent for some, but I think I got a majority if not all the gruesome scenes centered.  
> It was a really tense and fast paced chapter, and Kara did like 5 illegal things while getting to the safe house but ya'know... Actions don't have consequences in my stories, lmao.
> 
> Thanks to everyone who's made it this far, I look forward to writing more!  
> -Aries


	5. Chapter 5: Holiday Cheer

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lena and Kara go on a business trip to New York, but end up getting stuck due to a blizzard.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Holidays everyone!  
> Enjoy the extra long chapter, even though it's a lot of talking and relationship development. I tried to make it a little bit cute/funny.
> 
> Have a good weekend :)  
> -Aries
> 
> p.s. I have no idea why a end note I posted in the first chapter keeps showing up at the end of my most recent chapters, so... Idk how to fix it, so please ignore it if you notice it.

Kara winced as the doctor inspected her ribs, gently pushing against them. The bruising had gone away multiple days ago, and for the most part the 4 ribs that had broken in the car accident 3 weeks ago had healed. They were still sore, and Kara knew from experience that they’d be sore for the next few weeks.

“I’d still like you to wear your back brace to keep your ribs in place for the next week, but after those 7 days you don’t have to wear it as much… You can put your arms down,” The doctor instructed, stepping away. Kara nodded in understanding, slowly putting her arms down.

“What about the sling? Can I get rid of that?” Kara’s shoulder was feeling fine now, as long as she didn’t over extend it, or move too fast. The doctor took a second to inspect her shoulder before giving a satisfied nod. “You can stop wearing the sling… How’s your pelvis?”

Kara’s hip luckily hadn’t been broken in the accident, but it had been very badly bruised. Even 3 weeks later there was still bruising all the way through the muscle and skin. Kara could stand and walk just fine, but if she had to run it was very painful, and she couldn’t sit comfortable due to the area being tender to the touch.

She told the doctor this, who silently nodded as he listened. “We’ll keep an eye on it, but it sounds like it’s healing okay. I don’t think you need crutches or anything.” Kara was grateful to hear that. She was already annoyed enough that she had to wear a stupid back brace instead of her Kevlar vest.

“Can you put all of that in writing- the information about the sling as well?... My boss is very… Uh… Protective, and worried that I’m not giving her the full truth about my healing. We’re about to go on a business trip across the country, and I don’t want her to make me stay here while she goes.” Kara grabbed her t-shirt she’d taken off so the doctor could examine her, slipping it back on carefully.

The doctor looked slightly confused, but scoffed and nodded all the same. “I’ll give you a doctor’s note, sure… Have you had any other issues?” Kara put her glasses on, having taken them off to remove and put on her shirt. She shook her head as she adjusted the black frames on her nose.

“Good. Give me a few minutes to write up that note, then you’re free to go for the next week.” The doctor stood from his stool, but paused before he fully exited the room. “What do you do for work, might I ask?” He raised an eyebrow, looking genuinely curious.

“Traveling sales,” Kara lied easily. It wasn’t entirely untrue; she did travel around with Lena to make business deals with clients. The doctor took the lie with a content smile, fully leaving the room. Kara pulled out her phone to text Lena as she waited for the doctors note.

_’Almost done. I’ll be back in the office in an hour. Need to stop by my apartment.’_

It was short and to the point. Lena had given Kara the morning off to go to this appointment, so she didn’t bother dressing up in her usual uniform- thus why she was wearing her glasses –meaning Kara had to go back to her home to change.

Lena texted back quickly;

_’No rush, I’m at The Nightingale talking to James. Finn is with me, don’t worry.’_

James… Kara had completely forgotten about him. She’d only met him the first time she met Lena 3 months ago. Lena had been so busy with business trips that she didn’t have much time to go out with friends. Kara assumed she managed to find time this morning to finally go see him.

A bad taste formed in Kara’s mouth as some sort of dark emotion floated over her like a storm cloud. She had no idea why the text made her so annoyed, staring at the little bubble of text as if she hoped the words would rearrange themselves into some better news.

Kara had to put her phone away, feeling her annoyance growing into actual anger… Why in the world was she getting so angry? Was it because she thought that James was a liability? That he was going to cause danger towards Lena if their relationship- sexual or not –turned sour? He seemed like the vindictive type from what Winn told Kara multiple weeks ago.

The doctor came into the room as Kara tried to figure out why the name ‘James’ made her so angry. He asked Kara a few more questions, giving her the doctors note. Once they were finished, Kara left the office, taking the elevator down to the lobby. 

She didn’t want to think about James anymore, instead making a list of things she needed to quickly do back at her apartment. Kara got into her car and worked her way through the city traffic. The roads were starting to get snowy- although it all turned to dirty slush currently –and the city was filling with tourists and people coming to see their family for the holidays.

Christmas was next week, and although Kara didn’t really celebrate the holiday as most people do, she still enjoyed the excuse to go see her family. She hadn’t seen them face to face in over 2 years, and she was starting to miss them dearly. Lena mentioned that the trip to New York was only going to take a few days, and they’d be getting back two days before the 25th.

Kara had asked Lena if she could take the night of the 24th to drive to her family’s home a few states over, just to visit them on the 25th. “I’ll be back the 26th, early in the morning, so you won’t have to replace me for long,” Kara had told Lena. Her boss didn’t seem too bothered by Kara asking off, smiling and waving at her. “Enjoy your time with your family. I’ll have one of the others babysit in your place.”

Eventually Kara got to her apartment, quickly going up to change her clothing into her usual 2-piece suit. This one was a dark grey with a matching button up. Kara made sure to put her back brace on under the shirt, wincing slightly as she cinched the straps tight.

Once Kara was all dressed, she made sure not to forget her contacts before leaving her messy apartment. The drive to L-Corp was just as busy, and Kara anxiously worried that she was keeping Lena waiting. However, as she rushed up to Lena’s office Jess stopped her just before entering.

“Ms. Luthor is still out. She called so say she’d be back a little late.” Kara frowned, feeling another rush of annoyance. It’d be nice to have know that, so Kara could have gone to The Nightingale instead of wasted her time coming to L-Corp.

“But the other Mrs. Luthor would actually like to talk to you,” Jess added quickly, seeing the annoyed quirk of Kara’s eyebrow. This wasn’t good news either. The last thing Kara wanted was to deal with her right now. Regardless, it’s not like she could refuse.

Kara thanked Jess, going into Lena’s office for a brief moment to set her doctors note on her desk. She paused when a familiar sent filled Kara’s nose. Vanilla and mixed berries. Her mind shot back to 3 weeks ago. The pain, the panic, the fear… But also the feeling of having Lena touch her. The warmth of her chest, and the smoothness of her skin.

With a lurch Kara quickly left the office, closing the doors to Lena’s office, along with the memory of that day. She didn’t need to be having these thoughts- just like she didn’t need to be having such negative feelings against James. It wasn’t her place to form any opinions or connections with anyone.

Kara took the elevator up one floor to the elder Luthor’s office, knocking on the heavy oak doors. She heard a curt, “Come in,” before opening the doors. “Ah, Kara. Please sit,” Lillian said, gesturing to the chairs in front of her desk. She was drinking a rather large glass of scotch.

“You asked for me?” Kara asked politely. Lillian sipped her drink, nodding. “Yes… I realized I never got to talk to you about what happened with the Emerald Dragons.” Kara waited patiently for Lillian to continue. “Some of our Immortals have shown the Emerald Dragons that they’ve messed with the wrong family. We’ve got them running for the hills.”

Lillian smiled wide, but Kara silently wondered why she was being merged into the Immortals. She was a third party in all of this. Her job was to be concerned about Lena, not the rest of the Immortals. Regardless, she gave Lillian a small grin and a nod. “Congratulations.”

“I was told I should thank you for saving my daughter and keeping her out of harm’s way, but then again you’re just doing your job, aren’t you?” Kara’s hands clenched on her lap, trying to ignore the anger that tried rearing its head all over again. “I don’t expect anything of the sorts… Is there anything else you’d like to talk to me about?”

Lillian didn’t pick up on any sort of anger or annoyance in Kara’s voice, too busy sipping her alcohol. “Just make sure Lena doesn’t get hurt in New York… That city makes me nervous. We don’t have much power there, and I don’t want another repeat of Lex.” Kara highly doubted Lena was going to get into a fight with this client, considering this meeting was about L-Corp, not the Immortals.

The meeting ended with Lillian waving Kara off, turning her attention to her computer screen. Thankful that the talk was short, Kara quickly stood and hurried back to the floor below. She noticed that Lena’s office doors were open as she stepped out of the elevator.

Kara walked into the office to see Lena looking down at the doctors note on her desk. She looked up seeing Kara’s form in the doorway, waiting politely. “Come in. Can you please close the doors?” Lena smiled, a sort of warmth radiating off of her. Kara did as she was asked, taking a few more steps into the room after closing the doors.

“I see your doctor’s visit went well… Are you sure you’re comfortable enough to go on this trip tomorrow?” Lena sat down at her desk, tilting her head with a worried look. Her concern made Kara smile ever so slightly. “I’ll be fine, ma’am. I don’t think Finn or Ammarah like traveling very much anyways. I’m much more used to it.”

“You know you can call me Lena, right? You don’t have to keep up with this ‘ma’am’ and ‘Ms. Luthor’ crap- at least when we’re alone, that is,” Lena suddenly commented. Kara bit her tongue, trying not to smile. This wasn’t an invitation of friendship, Kara told herself... Lena was just more relaxed than everyone around them.

“If you’re asking me to, then I won’t call you such formal names… When we’re alone.” Lena scoffed, smiling playfully. “Really?... If I’m ‘asking’ you to?... Fine; Yes, I’m asking you to call me Lena.” Kara couldn’t fight the snort through her nose, causing Lena to smile more.

“You can sit and relax, I just have a few phone calls to make. It’s mostly office work today, I’m sorry. I know it’s boring listening to my business all day.” Lena gestured to the couch against one of the solid walls of her office. Kara shrugged as she took the offer, walking over and carefully sitting. “It’s part of the job.”

Lena smiled at her one more time before turning her attention to her office phone. She put typed a number into it as she held the receiver to her ear. Kara listened to her talk to someone on the other end of the line for a few minutes, admiring how- even on the phone –Lena managed to give off waves of authority. It was quite impressive.

For the rest of the day the two women sat in the office, Lena almost constantly being on the phone. At one point Kara got up and took a lap around the entire office floor, her hip bothering her. She spoke to Jess, whom she’d become friendly with, talking about hobbies. Jess mentioned she just finished a book earlier that day, offering to let Kara read it while Lena worked.

So, up until 5pm Kara sat, listening to Lena work on the phone and her computer, reading about a dystopian fantasy world. It was a very entertaining book, Kara getting so into it that she didn’t realize she had started to lean forward, resting her elbows on her knees as she anxiously read through a tense part of the story.

Only when Lena started to giggle in her direction did Kara look up, realizing she was hunched over this book as if it was her prey. “Enjoying your story?” Lena asked through her giggling. Kara felt her face heat up in a deep blush, awkwardly adjusting how she was sitting. “A little bit, yeah,” Kara bashfully smiled, the warmth of Lena’s laugh filling her chest.

“Well I’m almost done; I just have to finalize some details for the trip tomorrow. After, would you like to get some dinner?” Lena leaned back in her large chair, turning to now fully look at Kara. “Oh, no thank you. I’m not hungry.”

Kara almost got away with the lie, but in that moment her stomach chose to loudly grumble, as if telling Kara not to use bad excuses to get out of spending time with her boss. Lena arched an eyebrow and smiled, knowing that now Kara _had_ to accept the invitation.

“I’ll make some quick reservations to one of my favorite places. I think you’ll like it.” Lena chuckled playfully, turning her chair to grab the phone again. Kara sighed and returned to the book in her hand for another 45 minutes while Lena made reservations and finished up her work.

As soon as she was done, she stood and gave a big stretch. Lena locked her hands together and reached high above her head, flexing all her muscles with a look of concentration. As soon as she relaxed, bringing her arms back down to her side, a look of pure satisfaction crossed her face. “That chair gives me the worst back ache.”

Kara also stood, but she couldn’t stretch with nearly as much satisfaction as Lena, her ribs and shoulder protesting painfully. So instead she settled for just cracking her neck with two quick turns of her head. Lena adorably wrinkled her nose at the noise, mumbling something about Kara needing to see a chiropractor.

After grabbing her long overcoat Lena led the way out of the office. “I know you prefer to drive, so we can take your car if you’d like. I can tell you where to go,” She said as Kara followed her. “I would like that, thank you, ma’am.” When Lena turned to give Kara a stern look on the formal address, Kara quickly defended herself with, “We’re not alone. You said when we’re alone.”

Lena rolled her eyes, but smirked at the loop hole that Kara found, knowing that she couldn’t fight her own words. The two women made their way down to Kara’s car, Kara opening the passenger door for Lena like usual. Lena thanked her, bundled tightly in her thick coat as she slid into the seat.

Kara drove carefully, listening to Lena’s directions but staying silent for most of the ride. When they were stopped at a red light she shifted stiffly in her seat, feeling the tender muscle in her leg starting to burn with pain. Lena noticed the movement, giving a worried from.

“Are you sure you’ll be okay for the flight to New York?” Lena asked gently, glancing down at Kara’s hip. Kara didn’t hesitate to nod. She wanted to go with Lena on this trip- not just because Finn and Ammarah seemed hesitant on the travel, but because she preferred to be the one watching over Lena. 

“I’ll do what I normally do; not relax and walk around the plane a bunch,” Kara said in an accidentally sarcastic tone. Lena didn’t look all too happy with that reply, but she seemed to understand that Kara was going to be stubborn about this. She dropped the topic, going back to giving directions on where to turn.

Shortly they arrived at what looked to be a regular sky scraper in the city. However, as Kara turned into the parking area Lena directed her to, a valet came to meet them in the roundabout they drove into. Kara allowed the man to take the car, glancing back at it as he pulled away to park the vehicle. 

“I didn’t realize how nice we were dining tonight; otherwise I’d have asked to change into something nicer,” Kara mumbled more to herself than Lena. “You always dress nice, so I figured there was no point bringing it up,” Lena replied casually. Kara was taken aback by the sudden compliment, glancing at Lena who seemed to refuse to meet her gaze.

Lena took them into the tall building, following signs to an elevator. As they rode up to the very top floor, completely alone in the elevator, Kara couldn’t stop her curiosity. “What is this place, anyways?” She glanced to Lena who gave her usual mischievous smirk. 

“It’s called Fantasia… Do you remember Anthony’s back in Rome?” Kara nodded, remembering how they went their every day while touring around the city. “Well this is my version of that.” As soon as Lena said that, the doors of the elevator opened to an incredibly fine dining restaurant.

Within seconds of Lena stepping out after Kara, a young woman in a very expensive looking uniform greeted them. “Ms. Luthor, it’s so lovely to see you. Right this way, your table is waiting.” Kara glanced back to Lena, who grinned and nodded, giving Kara the go-ahead to follow the hostess.

They were taken back to a very secluded line of booths, facing away from the other dining tables. The booth was situated facing one of the glass walls, allowing Kara to look out over the entire city. It was sunset by now, the sky a beautiful mix of pinks and purples.

“Sloan will be right with you, ma’am,” the hostess said after Lena and Kara sat, hurrying away. “This place is really nice,” Kara said, glancing around the regular looking dining area. It was mostly empty, save for a few important looking people spaced all around the open floor.

Kara glanced down to the menu that was already set at the table, trying to see if there was anything that she’d be interested in. Unfortunately, as soon as she started to read the names of the dishes, she realized everything was in French. Out of all the languages Kara knew, French was not one of them- despite having worked in France before.

“What the heck is coq au vin?... Why can’t they just have something simple like pasta?” Kara whispered under breath, but when Lena burst out laughing she realized she said a little too loud. Kara’s face got bright red, her eyes widening in embarrassment. 

It took Lena multiple moments to get her laughter under control. Her cheeks started to turn red, matching Kara’s. She covered her mouth with her hand, leaning forward and wrinkling her nose a little bit as she cackled.

Eventually she managed to get herself under control, attempting to take a few deep breaths. She looked up to meet Kara’s eyes, tears in her own. “Would you like me to order for you?” Lena asked through her hand, loudly snorting before bursting into giggles.

Despite being mortifyingly embarrassed, Kara couldn’t help but nervously giggle along with Lena. It was kind of cute seeing her laugh at something so simple. Her smile almost matched the smile Kara saw back in Rome.

Once Lena was able to officially stop her laughter, she cleared her throat and took a big gulp of water that had already been set at the table for them. “To answer your question coq au vin is a chicken cooked with wine and mushrooms- to put it simply.” 

The way Lena flawlessly pronounced the French dish made Kara’s stomach flutter for some odd reason. The pronunciation was impressive was all. French is a very hard language, and it’s interesting that Lena knows how to at least speak some of it. Enough to read the menu, it looks like.

Lena read off a few of the other dishes on the menu, explaining what they were. As she spoke a very tall and lanky man wearing a chef’s uniform strode over with possibly the largest smile Kara had ever seen on a person. He had a long nose and a very thin mustache, making him fit the part of a French chef. 

However, when he spoke he had no accent. “Lena, my darling!” The man said in a very loud and overly excited voice. “It’s been so long I’d consider it a crime since we’ve last seen each other!” The man swooped down with his long arms and hugged Lena passionately.

Kara’s first instinct as a body guard was to push the man back, but when Lena embraced him tightly Kara stopped herself. “It’s so good to see you, Sloan. I’m sorry for such a long absence, it’s just been a very busy few months.” Sloan pulled away, his eyes wide in theatrical shock. 

“I heard! You were attacked by some nasty people only a few weeks back- is it true?!” Kara noticed Lena’s eyes flicker over to her before returning to Sloan. “I’m afraid I can’t explain very much, but yes I was involved in a very dangerous situation recently.”

Sloan continued to look overly shocked, giving an exaggerated nod. “Of course, of course- I completely understand why you’d need to keep everything quite.” His eyes finally moved over to look at Kara, who was sitting awkwardly, glancing between her boss and the chef.

“And who is this beautiful woman?” Sloan shifted over and offered an oddly slender hand to Kara. “I’m… Uh… Kara Danvers,” she replied with another awkward glance to Lena. She took the offered hand, expecting to simply give Sloan a handshake.

Sloan turned her hand so it was palm down, swooping forward to give the top of her knuckles a kiss. Kara felt every muscle in her body tense, feeling uncomfortable at such a gesture. Who the heck thought it was acceptable to kiss someone’s hand now and days?!

“I’m Sloan Devlin, it’s such a pleasure to meet you. Are you friends with our dear Lena?” Sloan’s unusually large smile returned, looking back to Lena who looked extremely amused. “I’m part of her security detail,” was all Kara said.

Sloan gasped and put his fingers over his mouth, the gesture reminding Kara of a child going ‘uh oh!’. “Oh boy, how intimidating!” He looked back to Lena who smirked. “She’s harmless unless you try anything stupid.” Kara quirked an eyebrow, silently thinking about how she’s quite the opposite of harmless.

“So you must have been the one protecting Lena from that group of bad people?” Sloan tilted his head, looking fascinated. “As Ms. Luthor said; I can’t say very much about the topic.” Sloan looked disappointed, but nodded.

“Well then how about something to eat? What would you like to try this time, Lena?” Sloan pulled out a small notepad, taking Lena’s order. She got some fancy sounding dish with a side of red wine. Kara ordered the one thing she knew for certain she’d like; Chicken Cordon Bleu.

Sloan nodded and excused himself to go make their food, lankily striding away. Kara watched him go with a ‘well that was an experience’ look on her face. Lena continued to mischievously smirk. “I feel like I need to apologize for Anthony now, and not preparing you for that,” Kara mumbled.

Lena chuckled and leaned back in her chair. “I just wanted to see how you’d handle him without any warning… You did very well, considering.” Kara felt like she was just quiet and awkward the entire time, silently wondering how well she truly handled meeting such a theatrical and bubbly person.

The two talked casually for maybe half an hour before Sloan came back with their dinner. He continued to chat loudly, being overly friendly with Lena and Kara. Eventually he walked away, allowing them to eat. The food smelled amazing, and as Lena watched Kara take the first bite of her chicken she smiled wide seeing Kara’s eyes widen in surprise.

The chicken literally melted in her mouth, a tsunami of flavor in every bite. “Do you see why this is my favorite restaurant?” Kara nodded vigorously, trying her best not to scarf down the meal too fast. It was a very well-known secret among Kara’s friends that the way to her heart was good food. This was a perfect example; even if Lena wasn’t the one who made the dish herself.

The two of them ate their meals rather quietly, Kara continuously glancing between Lena and the sunset. She finished her cordon bleu first, pushing the plate a few inches away to rest her clasped hands on the edge of the table as she quietly waited for Lena to finish.

“So,” Lena spoke after taking a sip of wine, “you’re going to visit your family after this trip?” She looked past her glass with a curious look. “Yeah, I am… My mom lives in Colorado, so I’m going to drive to her house for Christmas.” Kara smiled at the thought of seeing her family again, excitement buzzing in her chest.

Lena slightly raised her eyebrow. “Exactly how long does it take to drive to Colorado?” She leaned forward, resting her chin on her raised palm. “About 15 hours… I feel like it’s too short to fly, so even though it’s such a long drive I’d rather do that.”

A weird sort of smile crossed Lena’s face, as if she was sweetly amused. “15 hours… Really? You’re very stubborn, do you know that?” Her tone was soft and joking, the look in her eyes almost amorous. Kara felt her cheeks starting to warm in a blush, her heart fluttering at the fond expression.

She quickly grabbed her glass of water and took a long sip, almost inhaling a little bit of it. “I’ve been told,” Kara said, trying to keep herself from looking too flustered. This was literally the opposite of professional. “What about you? Are you and your family doing anything for Christmas?”

Lena looked at Kara as if she just said something extremely weird. “I don’t think I’ve ever celebrated Christmas with my family… I think the closest thing to a winter holiday that we’ve done together is Hanukkah when my father was still around.”

“Oh, I didn’t realize you were Jewish! I’m sorry if I-“ Kara started, but Lena’s smirk made her pause. “My father practiced Judaism, but that was it. I’m not religious, you don’t need to worry… To be honest, my family isn’t exactly a ‘family’.”

Kara furrowed her eyebrows, curious as to what that meant. “You’ve got your mother, right?” She didn’t bother including Lena’s aloof brother, knowing he was stuck in prison currently. Lena laughed softly at Kara’s words. “You’ve meet my dear mother… Do you really think she’s the gift giving type?”

To be honest Kara wouldn’t even bother calling Lillian a mother. She’d only seen Lena and her interact once the entire time she’s been working for the Luthor’s, and even then it wasn’t very positive. Kara wished it’d be acceptable for her to get Lena a gift, but she knew it wasn’t a good idea.

“What about James and your other friends? Have a friendly get together.” Kara gave a small shrug. In all honesty Kara didn’t really care about the gift-giving aspect of the holidays- it was just an added bonus to give and receive presents –more interested in the idea of getting to hang out with loved ones during a certain time of year.

Lena gave a small shrug with her shoulders, still intently looking at Kara. “They’ve got others to go to, and if I’m honest a lot of my friends aren’t really my friends. The closes person to me is James, but our relationship is more physical rather than emotional.”

Kara’s throat tightened at the idea of what that meant. The last thing she wanted was to picture her boss with someone. She shifted back in her seat awkwardly, her hip dully throbbing in pain. Kara tried not to wince, lifting herself up ever so slightly as she tried to reposition herself casually.

Despite her movements being very subtle, Lena noticed her stiffness. “Oh! Are you okay? Do we need to start getting ready to leave?” She had a worried look on her face, eyes wide and eyebrows furrowed as she starting to slide out of her side of the booth. “No, I’m fine,” Kara quickly lied.

She didn’t want to leave, she just wanted the topic to change. Lena paused, giving Kara a calculating look, obviously trying to see if her denial was true or not. “So, what exactly are you doing in New York again? It’s L-Corp related, right?” Kara distracted, hoping Lena would drop the subject of leaving.

Lena didn’t drop her suspicious look straight away, but eventually she relaxed back into her seat. She moved on to the new topic, talking about the business deal she was going to try and strike up with a genetics company all the way in New York.

They spoke for another hour or so, the restaurant now completely full of people. The National City skyline was glowing with traffic fifty stories below them. When there was a lull in the conversation, Kara looked out the window.

“This is the one thing I love about National City,” Lena said in a very quiet voice, sounding as if she was talking to herself. Kara looked to her, eyebrow raising slightly. “It’s so beautiful from so high up… It’s like you can ignore all the terrible stuff down in the streets.” She paused, still staring out into the night sky.

“No fighting… No corruption… No Immortals.” It was a whisper. A whisper that only Kara could hear. She stared at Lena’s unfocused face, silently questioning what she meant by that. Did she want to run away from the Immortals? To leave her family legacy behind?

None of Kara’s questions got answered, Lena’s phone suddenly ringing in her purse. Lena visibly frowned, turning back to the reality she wanted to ignore so badly. She answered the phone with that chilling authoritative voice that made Kara practically shiver.

Lena spoke to whoever was on the other end of the line for a few minutes before hanging up. She glanced at the time on her screen and frowned even more. “I think we should call it a night. We’ve got an early flight tomorrow… Do you mind taking me back to my apartment?”

“I don’t mind at all, it’s on the way to my place.” Kara stood, and offered her hand politely to Lena. She escorted her through the busy restaurant, letting her pause to call goodbye to Sloan through the kitchen serving window. Sloan waved goodbye, even blowing a few kisses.

It took a little longer to get down to the valet parking because of all the people coming up through the elevator, but eventually the two ladies got to Kara’s car, pulling into the bumper to bumper traffic of the city. Kara was starting to understand Lena’s comment about how the city looked beautiful from above, but down below it was a nightmare.

Kara managed to get Lena back to her apartment, idling in a designated drop-off area in front of the incredibly tall building. Lena paused with her hand on the door handle, turning back to Kara. “Why don’t I pick you up tomorrow? It’ll be just us going to New York, so we don’t have to wait on or pick up everyone else.”

Kara felt a little anxious about the idea of someone from work seeing where she lived- even just the outside of it –but then again the Luthor’s were the ones who got her that apartment in the first place. “Yeah, that’ll make things a lot easier, thank you… Have a good night, Lena.”

At the sound of her name coming so casually from Kara’s lips- not being yelled or said in an introduction, but being fully addressed for the first time –made Lena smile. It was that same brilliant smile that held such true emotion. Like she was actually happy, not keeping herself guarded.

“You as well, Kara.” Lena opened the door and stepped out into the cold night air. Kara watched her stride across the snowy sidewalk and into the apartment building safely. She didn’t realize it but she was mirroring Lena’s smile, her cheeks almost hurting.

Kara got back to her apartment feeling oddly content. For the first time in almost three months she was happy- truly happy, not just forcing herself to be okay in the current situation. Spending the day with Lena in such a casual way made Kara oddly overjoyed. 

Maybe it was because today was the least stressful day she had while watching over Lena since she started working for the Luthor’s… Or maybe it was because Lena made Kara feel like an actual human. She talked to her, acknowledge her existence, actually saw her. She wasn’t just some wall decoration like she was at every other job she had taken. Lena made her feel like a friend, not an employee.

Kara undressed from her uniform, changing into her tank top and running shorts, still feeling her happiness radiating around her. She felt so good that instead of going straight to bed like she normally did, Kara actually sat and watched a movie from her large collections of DVD’s; even making herself a small bowl of ice cream.

When it was time to go to bed, Kara was thinking about both the trip ahead of her, as well as what she’d be able to do once she was in Colorado with her family. Her sleep was filled with dreams about her sister and mother, but slowly trickled into dreams of Lena and a beautiful yet unrecognizable city.

**********

The plane landed in New York City in the early afternoon. There were a ton of people, the airport packed. Kara knew it was because of the holidays; everyone was going home or coming into town to see their family. It made Kara that much more excited to go home in 4 days. Lena and Kara had arrived to New York on the 20th, and were going to be leaving early the 23rd. 

Lena’s schedule was incredibly busy when it was e-mailed to Kara. Almost every day was packed with important meetings with this business, as well as their partners. When it came to science in business, no one messed around. If you wanted to work with a company, you’d also have to be approved by all of their partners.

Although it’s not a one-way street; While Lena was the only person who was able to make it in person, there’d be partners of L-Corp calling into the meeting to ask their own questions of each company. That’s why everything was going to take so long.

Kara took Lena through the packed airport, constantly glancing behind her to make sure her boss wasn’t swept away in the sea of people. Lena was looking around in open awe, her eyes wide and alert with her crimson lips ever so slightly parted.

“Have you ever seen a place so busy? This makes National City look like a ghost town!” Lena exclaimed with a small smile and a slightly nervous giggle. Kara had to agree that this amount of people in one area was kind of unnerving.

Kara had requested long ago, before this meeting was even being set up, that she was the one to be able to pick the people and company driving them around. Most of the high-end transportation businesses that the Immortals choose from give you background information on their drivers, so Kara was able to do her research and choose the driver. This trip they’d be shown around by a young woman named Lou.

Lou took them to their hotel- the famous hotel that’s featured in almost every New York City movie –The Plaza Hotel. It looked a lot like the hotel that Kara and Lena stayed at back in Rome, but this time with American architecture. As usual their overly large rooms were connected by a door, allowing Kara or Lena to switch between rooms if needed.

They didn’t spend much time in the hotel before Lena had to start heading to her first meeting. Lou drove them through the snowy traffic to their location; A massive glass building that reached so high Kara wondered if the top reached the clouds on an overcast day.

They gave Lena’s name to the lobby manager, who took them straight up to the meeting area. It was a very private room with a large table that could seat at least twenty people on one side. There was no one in the room, the manager mentioning that, “Mrs. Grant will be here shortly. She got stuck in a brunch meeting with a client.”

Lena and Kara sat down in the plush rolling chairs close to the middle of the table, Lena pulling out a bunch of paperwork as Kara silently turned left and right in the swiveling chair next to her. “This will probably take most of the day, but I was told there was a really nice restaurant near here that we could stop by tonight?”

Kara smiled at the idea of eating some good food tonight, the fact that Lena was actively trying to spend time with her making the smile just a little wider. “That’d be nice, I think… As long as this Grant woman doesn’t give you any homework tonight. Remember when we went to San Diego for a day and they made you fill out an entire stack of paperwork for them? You were up the entire night working on it.”

Lena didn’t have time to reply, a group of people coming into the room. They were led by a tall woman with wavy blonde hair and an incredibly thin body who walked as if she was the most important person in the world. She kind of looked like she could be related to Kara with her long nose and high cheek bones.

“Lena Luthor, I presume?” The tall woman asked with an almost lazy tone, looking to Lena as her thin eyebrow raising slightly. Lena nodded, her chin raising a little higher. Within the flip of a switch Lena’s body demeanor went from calm and relaxed to strong and authoritative. It was a very interesting thing to watch from Kara’s outsider perspective.

“Good. I’m Cat Grant, owner and CEO of Grant Genetics.” Cat Grant strode to the front of the long table. There was a projector screen and even a podium that Cat seemed to ignore, pulling a chair around to sit at the head of the table. The other people in the room also sat down, introducing themselves as CEO’s of the partnering companies of Grant Genetics.

Kara sat silently, watching all of them sit across the table. It kind of felt like a jury was watching their interrogation, waiting to make a judgement, which greatly unnerved Kara. Lena, on the other hand, looked to be as confident as ever. She had this strong glint in her eye as she nodded and politely smiled to each CEO.

“I’d like to get started with my first and biggest concern about this partnership, Ms. Luthor,” Cat said as soon as the introductions were over. Lena turned to Cat expectantly. “Your company, L-Corp, has some very interesting allegations against it.”

Kara knew this was going to be a big problem. They were trying to get into a very serious business, which meant their background check on L-Corp was going to be extensive. Of course they were going to figure out the people behind L-Corp, and what they really did. Kara glanced to Lena, who looked prepared.

“I’m going to be straight to the point here… Your business is a front for a very large- growing, in fact –National City and beyond mafia called the Immortals. Do you understand my concern here, Ms. Luthor? If your family goes down, and they start investigating the businesses tied to L-Corp, then I’m worried what will happen to Grant Genetics and our reputation.” The other CEO’s in the room nodded in agreement.

Lena took a moment to look around at the group. She shifted to sit a little straighter in her seat, setting her clasped hands on the table. “If you’ve done research on L-Corp then I’m sure you’ve found that- despite its underground reasoning for its existence –it is a legitimate business. Am I right?” Lena turned to Cat, who looked impressed that Lena was able to reply with such a fast, strong response.

Cat nodded slowly, as did some of the others in the room. “I completely understand your concerns, and while I cannot deny that my family is very openly tied to the Immortals, I can with no doubt in my mind tell you that L-Corp is more than just a front for the people who work for my family.”

Lena paused, reading all the expressions in the room before continuing. “While you might think I’m too busy with the Immortals, and willing to drag everyone around us down if they go under, I can hopefully ease your mind with this; The Immortals are not my priority. L-Corp, as a legitimate business, is where my full attention goes.”

Multiple people around the room looked impressed and instantly put at ease. A few of the CEO’s, including Cat, didn’t look quite as convinced yet. “I run L-Corp to be the best it can be in its current field. I’m interested in using it to actually help people.

“I want to grow L-Corp so that we can work with others just as strong as us to create new and better medicine for the world. With your help,” Lena gestured to everyone in the room, “Our scientists can work together- merging their knowledge together –to get better products with our experiments.”

Kara watched the entire room’s demeanor change. They were fully convinced, realizing that Lena actually cared for L-Corp and what they did as a business. Kara felt her emotions shifting as well. Lena wasn’t like Lillian at all- Kara realizing that this entire time she’d been holding the two of them at the same level.

She’d mushed Lena into this crime boss who ran a violent gang just like her mother, but that wasn’t Lena at all. Kara no longer saw her as an heir to a bloody legacy, but instead the leader of a company trying to help others. Lena openly cared so much more about L-Corp and what it was doing compared to running the Immortals.

“I’m here not on the business of the Immortals, but on a mission to better L-Corp and help the company become something more than just a front for something as unsavory as it is right now.” Lena finished her small speech, eyes scanning around the room for any dissatisfied faces.

Everyone looked convinced, even Cat Grant who looked to have been the most skeptical of them all. “Well, that’s fantastic,” Cat said with a slightly bubblier attitude. “So then the next thing I’d like to ask you is…” The rest of the meeting was filled with boring talk that Kara didn’t entirely understand.

She could follow along with the general idea of what they were asking, but they got into so much science and business lingo that Kara decided it’d just be better to not try and give herself an aneurism while trying to follow along with the conversation.

Unfortunately, due to all the questions taking up a considerably longer amount of time than planned, it pushed the end time of the meeting much further back. It had just reached 4pm when they finally switched the meeting around for Lena and her group of companies to ask questions. 

First they had to call all of them into a conference call over the phone, which took some time due to a few CEO’s not picking up their phone’s, so they had to call them once or twice more before they finally picked up.

Kara silently wondered if that’d effect Lena’s credibility, but as Kara looked around the room no one seemed too annoyed at her. Lena herself even looked calm, apologizing and making the excuse that some of the CEO’s probably were busy with work due to the meeting running much later than expected.

By the time everyone finished their questions for the first day- both Grant Genetics and L-Corp partners alike –it was well past 8pm. Kara was exhausted just sitting there. They had taken a break for lunch about halfway through, but Grant Genetics provided lunch, so Lena and Kara stayed in the building.

Lena packed up her paperwork, a slightly exhausted slump to her shoulders. “I think you should get some rest,” Kara suggested as they walked out of Grant Genetics. With each step Lena seemed to look more and more tired, specifically in her face and shoulders.

Lena gave a disappointed sigh, glancing at her watch before solemnly nodding. “Let’s take a raincheck on dinner, just for now… Although I’ve got a terrible feeling every day’s going to be that long. Maybe before we leave for National City we can take some time to go out and enjoy ourselves.” 

Unfortunately, Lena was right. Every single day they were there was completely packed with meetings that lasted almost the entire day. When they did finish Lena was either too exhausted or had to do research on the other companies so she could fact check them in the meeting the next day.

It didn’t help that the further they got into the trip, the more overcast it seemed to get. The sky had started off a beautiful clear blue with only a few clouds in the sky when they’d gotten there Sunday, but by the time it was Tuesday evening there were dark clouds looming overhead.

Kara was in her room that night, trying not to feel disappointed that Lena was too busy to fulfill her plans of them going out to dinner together, packing up her bags for them to leave the next morning when she heard a knock on the adjoining door.

She opened the door, still in her work suit, looking down to Lena who had an apologetic look on her face. Kara furrowed her eyebrows, leaning against the doorframe. “What’s wrong?” She asked, seeing the look only get deeper on Lena’s face.

“What days were you planning on going to your family?” A sinking feeling settled low in Kara’s stomach, her mind jumping to the idea that Lena was going to have to extend the trip due to extra meetings with Grant Genetics.

“Uhm… Christmas eve until the day after Christmas… Why?” Lena was shifting around, fiddling with a golden ring on her thumb. “Because our flight’s been canceled…” Kara shot off of the doorframe, her confusion deepening. “What?! Why?”

Lena winced, her shoulders tensing, knowing that Kara wasn’t going to be happy with the news she was going to give her. “Because there’s a huge blizzard coming right over us. Everything’s shutting down for the next three days. We can’t leave until the 25th…”

Kara felt herself go through the 5 stages of grief all within a few seconds… Denial; She couldn’t believe that they were going to be stuck in New York for three extra days. Anger; Kara was angry- not at Lena –because now she wasn’t going to be able to see her family. 

Bargaining; Maybe they could find someone to drive them all the way back? Or they could rent a car? No, that was just as dangerous as flying due to all the ice and snow. The wouldn’t be able to see. Depression: Kara hadn’t seen her family in over two years. She was so excited to finally hug her mom and even talk to Alex, but now that wasn’t going to happen.

And finally, acceptance… Kara was stuck here. There was no getting around that. She’d just have to wait it out. Maybe her family was available after Christmas, so they could just push things back a few days. Would Lena allow her to do that? It’d only be three days- not even –and Ammarah could take over for her during that time.

Kara sighed, Lena watching her rub her face with both hands in veiled annoyance. “So do we need to go downstairs to extend our stay?” Kara asked through her hands before dropping them heavily to her side. “I already did… They said they’re going to go on a lock down starting tomorrow morning, just so they can keep everyone safe.”

Great, so now they were not only stuck inside New York, but they were now stuck in this hotel as well. Kara guessed it could have been worse. She at least had Lena to keep her company. “I know you were really excited about seeing your family… I’m sorry that didn’t work out.”

“It’s fine. It’s not your fault. You couldn’t have known there’d be a blizzard… I’m going to go take a shower, and unpack again… I’ve got to let my family know the situation as well.” Lena frowned, nodding in understanding. She allowed Kara to step back and close the adjoining door, Kara giving one last irritated sigh before going to do as she said.

Eliza Danvers took the information well, although she did seem very disappointed that Kara couldn’t make it. She told Kara not to worry, and that they’d all be together as a family one day. “For now, stay safe and keep warm. I love you, and I hope you can still have a good Christmas even though you’re not with us.”

It was later in the evening, neither of the girls eating due to a late lunch at Grand Genetics. Kara tried going to bed, but her mind was running around in circles, not letting her get even close to sleepy. She sighed and sat up in bed, snuggling into the long sleeve shirt and sweatpants she wore.

Figuring she had nothing to do tomorrow, considering they couldn’t leave the hotel once the blizzard started, Kara decided to stay up and watch TV. She switched on a show she was familiar with, creating a mountain of pillows to nestle into. Already she could hear the wind outside picking up.

It was around 3am when Kara’s phone dinged in a text. Confused, Kara frowned, wondering who would be texting her. When she checked her phone, she realized it was Lena:

_’I don’t normally celebrate Christmas, but to make up for getting you stuck here I’d like to make you something. Let me know what you’d like?’_

Kara furrowed her eyebrows at the text, reading it 3 times to make sure she understood it correctly. Lena wanted to get her a Christmas present?

_’You don’t have to do that. I’m an adult, I don’t need to actually open stuff on Christmas day._

_And you didn’t get me stuck here. Please don’t beat yourself up over this.’_

There was a thirty second pause before Kara’s phone dinged again.

_’Why are you awake?’_

_’I could ask you the same thing.’_

Kara scoffed and set her phone down, finding it amusing that Lena was being such a hypocrite about staying up late. She waited a few moments to see if Lena would text her back, but her phone never chimed. Instead, there was a soft knock at the adjoining door.

“Uh… Come in?” Kara quirked an eyebrow, wondering what Lena needed. The door, already unlocked, carefully opened. Lena poked her head into the room, her long raven hair in an uncharacteristically messy bun. She was wearing her glasses again, much like Kara, the low TV light making her lenses glow slightly.

“Do you mind me being in here?” Lena gestured to the room with her chin. Kara shook her head, although she did feel like it was a little awkward for her boss to be in her hotel room. Regardless, Kara’s curiosity outweighed her slowly declining desire to be professional around Lena. They were alone, so there was no one to watch her let her walls down.

Lena carefully stepped into the slightly messy room, glancing around as she closed the door behind her. It was very cold in the room, the below freezing temperature of the whistling blizzard outside leaching into the room. Lena shivered slightly, the movement drawing Kara’s attention to her outfit. 

She wore a blank grey long sleeve shirt and very worn in crimson leggings. Even with no makeup on Lena was unfairly beautiful, the bright light of the TV casting sharp shadows across her face, accentuating her already strong features.

Kara scooted a little ways to the right of the bed, flipping open the blankets to invite Lena into the much warmer bed. “You don’t have to stand over there,” Kara said softly, smirking at the relieved look on Lena’s face as she practically ran into the bed.

“Is everything okay?” Kara asked, watching Lena get comfortable under the thick blankets. “Yeah, I just wanted to have a conversation about presents, and since you’re awake I figured we could just talk in person.” Lena gave a small shrug and a grin, looking at Kara.

“Lena, I appreciate it, but you don’t have to get me anything. I know you don’t celebrate Christmas, and like I said earlier; I like being around people on Christmas, not getting gifts.” Lena huffed, giving Kara a lightly unamused look. “Right, but you’re not able to spend time with the people you want to be around this year, so I’d like to give you the alternative instead; a present.”

“Who said I don’t want to be around you for Christmas?” The question came out of Kara’s mouth before she could stop herself. Lena looked surprised, then confused. “Why would you want that? You specifically asked to go see your family this year, and now you can’t go see them.”

Kara suddenly felt bad. Had Lena wanted to spend this time of holidays with Kara? It’s not like she was going to spend time with her mother- she said so earlier how Lillian didn’t celebrate any winter holiday, and it’s not like she was going to be fun to be around anyways. Kara quickly realized that Lena was lonely. She didn’t have any friends or family to be around.

If she’d been expecting to spend time with Kara, did that mean she didn’t think of Kara as just an employee? The curiosity was too much for Kara to repress, not even bothering to stop herself from asking, “Lena, what do you think of me? Am I only your body guard in your mind?”

Lena shifted awkwardly, looking down at her hands as if she was ashamed. “No... You’re not my babysitter to me anymore… I’d consider you a friend, as weird as that sounds.” So Kara had guessed right… All this time she’d been trying to keep a wall between them that stopped them from being anything but employer and employee.

Somehow within the past three months, however, Lena managed to scale over that wall and peak her head over the edge. She’d been waving from the top down to Kara this entire time, but Kara had been too busy trying to fortify the wall that she hadn’t bothered to look up and see how futile her efforts were.

“I don’t find that weird,” Kara replied softly after a pause. Screw the wall. Screw distancing herself from the ones around her. She wanted connection- friendship –not realizing how miserable it was not being close to anyone. Her family and old friends were either states away or too busy to spend more than a few hours every couple of months with Kara. She was lonely, too.

Lena, unlike the others, was with her constantly. There’d been an instant bond between them, ever since they went to Rome. Kara hadn’t realized that she was hurting Lena while she was trying to sever that bond between them… All for what? Because she wanted to keep her brand of being professional? Because she was so used to only knowing someone for a few weeks before losing them forever?

Lena looked up from fiddling with the blankets at Kara’s words, a vague look of surprise back on her face. “I’m sorry?” Lena asked, as if she hadn’t heard Kara correctly. Kara elaborated, “I don’t think someone trying to make friends with a person that’s constantly around them is weird… I’ve just always liked to keep a distance from my clients around others. It makes both me and my employer look bad if we’re seen as friends rather than a professional relationship.”

There was a long pause before Lena started to suddenly laugh, the tension in the room shattering at the sound. “Then let me get you a present, dammit!” The conversation turned full circle. Kara couldn’t help but smile, snorting in amusement. “No, I don’t want one!” The two girls laughed together for a minute.

“Fine, then I’m just going to make you something that you might hate, because you refuse to let me figure you out.” Lena crossed her arms and raised her eyebrow sassily. “Do whatever you want, just know I’m not going to take it… Straight away.”

Lena gasped at the little bit of joking information Kara gave her. “Oh, so you do want a present!” She playfully took the pillow she was leaning against, tossing it at Kara’s face. Kara caught the pillow, bursting into laughter all over again.

The two of them bantered like this for a few minutes. The wall had been demolished, both girls already starting to make a connection now that a middle ground had been created. It felt smooth and easy, like two magnets being drawn together.

Eventually the two of them started to get tired, having stayed up for an extra hour or 2 talking casually. Lena called it a night, sliding out of Kara’s bed and returning to the adjoining door. “We’ve got all day tomorrow and the next day to do something for the holiday… Maybe there’s some cheap Christmas movies on the TV as well that we could watch?”

Kara smiled at the idea of spending more time with Lena, her disgruntlement about being stuck in New York easily ebbing away. “Of course… Sleep well, Lena.” Lena returned the smile, nodding in agreement. “You too, Kara.”

**********

After Lena had left that night Kara fell asleep much easier, not waking up until well after noon. She felt groggy and well rested in her warm bed, not wanting to get up. It was rare that Kara was actually able to embrace her lazy side, always having to get up on a schedule because of Lena or other clients.

She didn’t roll out of bed for another 2 hours, playing on her phone and taking another short nap before deciding it’d be a good idea to get dressed in something warm and start planning out Lena’s gift. If she was going to make Kara a present, then Kara was going to make her a present.

At first she had a really hard time thinking of what to make. She didn’t know a lot about Lena personally. It didn’t help that Kara didn’t have any supplies in her hotel room. Kara wasn’t the type to go out and buy a single thing for someone, feeling like that was cheap and not as fun to watch them open.

Kara called down to the hotel lobby after unsuccessfully trying to find something in her room to make something cute with, asking them if the gift shop was still open- It’s a famous New York hotel, of course there’s a gift shop. Thankfully, despite it being the start of a blizzard outside, the gift shop was still staffed and open.

Kara went downstairs, silently hoping that Lena didn’t have the same idea and was down there currently. Luckily it didn’t look like Lena was there, so Kara was able to look all around the small shop. There was a ton of tourist knick-knacks; shirts, key chains, snow globes, and all sorts of candy.

At first nothing really struck Kara as a good gift, only finding some small things that looked like Lena would possibly like. Then the idea of creating a gift basket sprung into Kara’s mind. She grabbed a bunch of different items around the shop, smiling to herself as she looked down at her purchase.

Taking everything back upstairs, Kara cleared off the round table that was in her room, laying everything out. She took the small wicker basket that had the skyline of New York painted on it, stuffing the plastic bags that she used to carry the items upstairs at the bottom to fill it up.

Then Kara took the small bouquet of fake flowers she found hidden in the back corner of the store, arranging them around the back of the basket to make a tall ‘wall’. Kara was halfway through arranging all the small knick-knacks when suddenly there was a knock on the adjoining door.

Kara tensed in surprise, looking from the door to the present-strewn table. “Crap… One second!” Kara called to Lena on the other side of the door. She quickly grabbed a small decorative blanket that was at the bottom of the bed, throwing it over the table. It looked incredibly suspicious, but it hid the items from sight.

Adjusting her slightly skewed glasses, Kara finally opened the door for Lena, who looked very confused. “Did I interrupt something?” Lena asked, glancing at Kara’s blushing cheeks and slightly heavy breathing. “Oh, I was just working on something, it’s fine…. Just don’t touch that blanket.” 

Lena looked past Kara to the blanket that was very obviously hastily thrown. “I can come back later,” Lena said with an odd look on her face, already starting to step backwards. “No!... No, it’s fine.” Kara almost didn’t realize she was reaching forward to grab Lena’s wrist until it was almost too late.

She managed to stop herself, pulling her hand away slightly. “I was just putting together your present for Christmas,” Kara finally admitted. Lena paused, realization crossing her face. She laughed a little, pushing a strand of hair behind her ear.

“Oh… I thought you were… Never mind,” Lena physically shook some sort of inappropriate thought out of her head. “You work fast.” Kara moved aside to let Lena walk into her messy room, giving a small shrug.

Lena was much more warmly dressed today. She wore a very cute sweater that looked thick, and some long pants with socks. She didn’t have her glasses on today, unlike Kara who’d run out of one-day contacts the night before.

“Have you eaten yet?” Lena asked, glancing at the table one last time before going over to the bedside table and pulling out what looked to be a menu. “I haven’t, I just assumed everything inside was closed until I called and asked a little while ago.”

“Would you like to eat with me? We could watch movies like we mentioned last night… Although I understand if you’d like to be alone,” Lena glanced up with a testing look to Kara, who instantly started shaking her head at the thought of Lena leaving.

“I’d love to eat with you and watch movies. Here, let me turn on the TV and see what’s on.” Kara grabbed the remote and started to flip through the channels while Lena looked at the menu. She made a joking comment that they had spaghetti, making Kara laugh in remembrance of the last restaurant they ate together at.

Once a movie was chosen and their late lunch/early dinner was ordered the girls sat down and watched movies for the rest of the day. It was very relaxing, and Kara felt as if she wasn’t hanging out with her boss but instead a long lost friend.

Lena didn’t leave until late that night, sleepily walking back to the adjoining door. Kara walked her to the door as if she was walking her to the front door of her house after a date. “Tomorrow is Christmas Eve… Did we want to do the same thing as we did today?” Kara suggested. Lena smiled and nodded, watching Kara lean against the doorframe as usual.

“I’ll need some time to work on your present, though,” Lena mentioned. Kara scoffed, but agreed. “Then same time tomorrow.” Lena smiled, but didn’t move back into her room just yet. “I uh… I think the blizzard will be gone by tomorrow night, so… We’ll be out of here by Christmas afternoon.”

Kara wondered if things between her and Lena would change just like they changed in Rome. Would Lena become guarded all over again? Was Kara going to have to rebuild her broken down walls once they were back in National City? This connection with Lena felt so good that Kara was incredibly reluctant to lose it.

“Alright. Text me the times, and I’ll see if Lou’s available to drive us.” Kara pushed off from the doorframe, watching Lena take a step backwards. “Sleep well, Lena.” Kara softly smiled, noticing that Lena always seemed to perk up at the sound of her name coming from Kara’s lips. “You too, Kara.” The door closed, Kara also noticing that there was a weird fluttering in her chest at the sound of her own name.

**********

Kara laughed as the credits of the terrible movie they just finished watching rolled. It was a crappy Hallmark movie that had such bad acting that even the sad scenes were comical. Lena looked incredibly unimpressed, staring at the TV with dead eyes. This made Kara laugh even more.

“That was so stupid! They shouldn’t have even gotten together. That relationship is so toxic, and they screwed so many people over just trying to get back to each other!” Lena complained, gesturing to the TV as if it was a person who could hear her. Kara was laughing so hard that she almost fell off the bed, hugging her aching sides. Her sore ribs didn’t like all this movement.

Once Kara could get herself under control, wiping tears from her cheeks, she beamed at her boss. Lena tried to keep her annoyed façade on, but eventually broke, smiling wide. “You knew that was going to suck, didn’t you?” Kara tried to keep her giggles down, not wanting to break into another fit of laughter. “I’ve seen it before… I just wanted to know what you thought.”

“Oh, you jerk!” Lena grabbed the pillow she was hugging and smacked Kara a few times. Kara let her, cackling as she tried to block her face with her arms. “It- mmph… Was really- Ah!... It was really funny! Hey, stop that!”

With the last smack Kara grabbed the pillow and pulled it out of Lena’s grip. Lena stumbled and momentarily fell diagonally over on top of Kara, who tensed at both the contact and the weight on her still healing body. It felt as if an electric current was sent straight up Kara’s spine, and she couldn’t tell if it was from the discomfort of her wounds or because she could feel the inviting warmth of Lena’s body in the cold room.

The contact didn’t last long, Lena quickly getting up when she realized she was hurting Kara. She cussed softly, kneeling on both knees next to Kara. “Are you okay?” Lena’s hair was a wild black mess, and her cheeks were pink with exertion. She was looking Kara up and down, trying to see if there was anything physically wrong.

“I’m fine, it was just my shoulder... Here, let’s see what’s playing. I swear, if I’ve seen it and know it’s bad I’ll switch it to something else.” Kara quickly changed the subject, getting up to fix her outfit and hair. Lena sat back on her legs, watching Kara.

“You’re a very kind person, do you know that?” The comment made Kara pause as she tried to fight her wild mane of hair. “Huh?” She asked, tilting her head. The soft, almost goofy noise made Lena grin sweetly. “I think you’re probably one of the nicest people I’ve met… It surprises me that you’re so reserved.”

Kara stared at Lena for a moment, wondering why she was suddenly saying all of this. “I’m not reserved, I’m just trying to keep things professional,” She corrected. Lena blinked, furrowing her eyebrows as she matched Kara’s head tilt. “Why put so much effort into doing something you very obviously don’t want to be?”

Was Kara being that obvious that she wanted to get to know Lena? Or had she just figured it out when she realized how easily Kara broke once she realized Lena also thought of her as a potential friend. “Isn’t that what you hired me for?”

Lena frowned slightly, shaking her head. “I didn’t hire you because I thought you’d be professional; I hired you because I thought you’d be humane.” Kara paused, studying Lena. She was a brilliant, beautiful woman who knew much more than she let people know. Every time Kara thought she knew something about Lena it turned out to be totally wrong.

“What made you think that?” Kara’s curiosity got the better of her. She’d always thought she was hired because of her perfect record, and safety abilities. Now she wasn’t so sure. Lena took a moment to answer, calculating how she should phrase what she was about to say.

“You’re Special Forces turned mercenary… That’s all I had to know. It’s obvious you’ve seen some terrible stuff in the military. Terrible enough that you left. Sometimes when people see what humanity is capable of, they lose all hope and give up on people. Others, like you, end up devoting yourselves to help others. In your case you help protect people from those who might hurt them.”

Lena’s words were true. Kara had seen lots of death- and caused lots of death. The guilt was so overwhelming that she wanted to help people, but her only skills were fighting and knowing how to protect. 

She couldn’t join a revolutionary job in science like Lena, and she hated math so she couldn’t help in those types of fields. So, she chose to protect those who needed help. Although in the end that message ended up getting muddled due to all the corruption that had seeped into the world.

“You talk as if you’re not humane.” Kara spoke softly, almost as if she didn’t want Lena to hear her words. Now Lena looked confused, quirking an eyebrow. “I don’t know what you mean.” Kara could tell that if she said one wrong thing then Lena would completely shut down. She’d put her walls up if Kara wasn’t careful.

“Sunday, when we were at the meeting, and Cat Grant asked you about the Immortals… You said so yourself; your priority isn’t your family’s legacy… it’s helping people with L-Corp. It’s like you don’t even want to be a Luthor, you just want to make a difference with medicine.”

Lena stared long and hard at Kara, her expression unreadable. She looked like she wanted to say something, but the words were getting caught in her throat. Kara didn’t want to push her, or make her uncomfortable in any way. She decided to drop the subject, changing it back to the lighter topic of Christmas movies.

She turned to the TV, seeing what was about to play next. “Oh, Happiest Season. This movie’s… Interesting, to say the least. It’s cute, but there’s so many underlying problems. Want me to change the channel?” Kara gestured to the TV. Lena’s attention snapped away from Kara, over to the movie that was starting to play. “No, let’s see what fiasco this is going to be.”

The tone of the room shifted back to relaxed and happy, Kara crawling back onto the bed to lay down. Much like yesterday they stayed like this all day, ordering room service and staying up well into the night.

At around 11pm Lena turned to Kara in the middle of their movie. “Why don’t we give each other our presents at midnight? It still counts as Christmas, right?” Kara smirked, glancing at the gift basket that she continued to hide under a blanket.

Kara had to admit that she was incredibly curious to see what Lena had either made or gotten her, so she agreed. “I think that’s a great idea.” They smiled to each other and anxiously waited for the clock to click towards midnight.

As soon as the red numbers of the digital clock read 12:00am Kara burst out of bed and ran to grab her gift. Lena laughed, jumping up to trot into her room, also grabbing her present for Kara. When she came back she was hiding something behind her back, grinning like an overly excited child.

“Here, you open yours first- Oh, if you need to hide my present for a moment I won’t look.” Kara made a show of looking up at the ceiling and covering her eyes with her hands. Lena giggled at her before padding to go hide the present behind something in the room. “Okay, you can open your eyes.”

Kara looked back at Lena, grinning wide as her chest buzzed with excitement. “I couldn’t wrap it, so you’re going to have to pretend the blanket is wrapping paper.” Kara stood back, biting her thumb nail as she watched Lena carefully lift the blanket off of the gift basket.

Lena gasped, seeing the flowers and knick-knacks in the painted basked. “Oh, Kara! This is so cute! Look at all of this,” Lena said in awe, taking out some of the candy. She pulled out a rolled up ‘I love New York’ sweater, looking back to Kara. “I know it’s not really your style, but I thought it’d be fun to put it in there,” Kara said anxiously.

“I absolutely love it. Here-“ Lena took the sweater and pulled it over her shirt. She grinned down at the slightly oversized sweater, pushing all her hair back so she could read it. Kara couldn’t help but laugh. “You look adorable… Like a little kid wearing their parent’s shirt.”

Lena smiled, laughing along with Kara in agreement. Her cheeks turned a slight shade of red, Kara wondering if she was hot with all her layers on now. Lena looked through the basket some more, commenting on a few other small things before turning back to Kara.

“Okay… My turn to give you your present… Can you close your eyes again?” Kara nodded in compliance, instantly putting a hand over her eyes. She could hear Lena walking around the room for a few seconds before her footsteps stopped in front of her. “Hold out your hand?”

Kara did as she was told, feeling something light like paper being set in her palm. “Okay, open them,” Lena said softly. Kara removed her hand from her eyes, looking down to see that there was in fact paper in her outstretched palm.

It was folded up, looking to be multiple pieces. At first Kara thought it was a letter, glancing to the anxious looking Lena, before going to unfold the paper. It wasn’t a letter, but in fact plane tickets. Kara furrowed her eyebrows, looking at Lena with a confused look.

“They’re to Colorado, so you can see your family… The flight leaves this afternoon, and then you have tickets to return to National City in three days. I know Christmas with family means a lot to you, and even though you say you don’t mind spending Christmas with me, I think you should really go and see your them.”

Kara stared at the paper in her hands for what felt like hours, mouth slightly ajar. She kept reading the destination of the ticket over and over again. She was finally going to see her family… Then, a thought popped into her head.

“Come with me.” Kara blurted, looking up at Lena, who looked taken aback. “What?” She furrowed her eyebrows, eye darting between Kara’s. Kara lowered her hand holding the tickets, taking a half step forward. “Come to Colorado with me… Say it’s an extension of this business trip or something.”

“Why do you want me to go with you?” Lena swallowed hard, visibly tensing when Kara got closer. “Because then you’ll be alone on Christmas if I go… No one should be alone on Christmas.” Kara looked down at Lena, holding her eye contact for a moment before looking all over her face.

“Wha… I don’t think your family will want to meet me,” Lena stuttered, starting to look increasingly flustered. She seemed to be grasping at excuses, Kara not satisfied with the obvious evasion.

“They won’t mind. My mother loves meeting my friends…. Lena… Come with me… Please?” She took another half step forward, unsure of why she was doing that. Kara was aware that she didn’t need to be this close, but it’s not like Lena was stepping away.

Lena’s breathing seemed to pick up slightly, her eyes fluttering down Kara’s face for a split second before looking back up with an even darker blush on her cheeks. “Okay… I’d love to.”


	6. Chapter 6: The Centennial State

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kara and Lena spend some time with Kara's family for the holidays.

_”Kara- hey –are you okay? You called really late last night, so I was asleep. Is something wrong? You’re not picking up, so now I’m worried... Call me back when you get a chance, okay?”_

Kara pulled her phone away from her ear, looking to Lena, who stood to her right. Lena looked oddly calm in her body language, but there was an anxious glint in her eyes. She kept glancing around the airport like she was looking for something.

The two of them had just landed in Colorado an hour ago, the trip incredibly spontaneous. Kara had suggested they go see her mother in a spur of the moment, Lena accepting the offer and quickly buying a second set of tickets. 

Kara realized a little too late that her mother probably wasn’t planning on seeing Kara that day, let alone her daughters boss as well. Kara tried calling her around 1am that morning, but of course she didn’t pick up. By the time Eliza was awake, Kara and Lena were already packed up and on their way to the early afternoon flight. She must have called while they were on the plane- when Kara’s phone was off.

Kara quickly redialed her mother’s number, Lena watching her with cool, anxious eyes. Eliza answered after a few rings. “Kara? Is everything okay? Why did you call so late last night?” The sound of her mother’s voice made Kara grin, even if it was full of worry.

“I’m alright, mom… I was actually calling because I’ve got some good news.” Kara paused, glancing down to Lena. “I’m actually able to make it to Christmas today- me and my… Uh… Friend.” Kara didn’t know if she should explain exactly who Lena was, feeling like that might make things a little awkward.

“Your friend? Oh, Kara, that’s so wonderful! I can’t wait to see you!” Eliza’s voice was so full of excitement that it made Kara want to start bouncing up and down to match her joy. “Yeah, it was a really nice surprise to find out we weren’t going to be stuck as long as we thought… Actually, we’re in Colorado now. We’re about a 2-hour drive from you; we’re just about to rent a car.”

Eliza continued to talk excitedly about how happy she was that Kara- and her still unknown friend –could make it. She started to ramble about all the stuff they were going to be doing that day, and how Alex was going to arrive shortly.

The thought of seeing Alex made Kara’s stomach churn with anxiety. She’d not talked to her for so long, and was afraid that Alex would still be mad over their last conversation. Both of them had said some pretty rough stuff to each other. Kara had forgiven her for the fight, but Alex was known to harbor negative feelings.

After Eliza finished her rambling, Kara explained how long they’d be there, walking with Lena through the busy airport. Eventually Kara had to hang up, telling her mother she loved her and couldn’t wait to see her.

As soon as the phone call ended, Lena spoke. “So she doesn’t mind me tagging along?” The two of them shouldered through a group of people, Kara keeping a protective arm hovered around Lena’s shoulders out of habit. “No, not at all. It’s not the first random friend we’ve invited over, and mom’s really accepting of strangers. I’m sure she’ll accept you like one of her own.”

Lena still looked a little awkward, not entirely convinced it seemed. “Trust me, she’s probably the sweetest person you’ll ever meet.” Kara smiled down to Lena, trying to make her feel a little more comfortable. Lena gave a tiny smile back, nodding as she took a deep breath. “Okay, if you say so… I mean you’ve got to learn it from someone, right?”

Kara scoffed at the compliment, rolling her eyes a little. She moved her attention to traversing the airport, leading their way through the crowds. They got their bags and ordered a rental car, Kara taking the keys.

Once everything was packed into the small two door rental, Kara put in her mother’s address into a GPS and started to drive. The roads were freshly plowed through most of the way, the mountains covered in a beautiful white sheet.

Lena watched the scenery pass by in awe. She mentioned she had been to Colorado before, but she rarely drove- or when she did she wasn’t looking out the window, too busy on a phone call or something else like that.

The two hours felt much less as Kara started to recognize the area they were in. Towards the end she just ended up turning the GPS off, commenting how the micromanaging voice bothered her. Lena scoffed at that, mumbling something about how stubborn Kara was.

They pulled in a small, spaced out neighborhood, Kara pointing out houses of where her old friends used to live. “They’re all gone and grown up now, but man did we have so much fun running around together… Do you have any fond memories of growing up with friends?”

Kara glanced to Lena when she didn’t answer straight away. Her expression was unreadable as she looked down at her crimson painted nails. “I didn’t have very many friends as a child. It was just me and my brother, and he wasn’t much fun to be around.”

“Well then we’ll have to make up for that,” Kara replied without hesitation, glancing between Lena and the road. Lena looked surprised for a moment before her face changed to another unreadable emotion. It looked like a weird mix of happy and grateful, yet simultaneously sad and distant.

Kara didn’t have any time to question her on the facial expression, the familiar Danvers home coming into view. A mixture of excitement and anxiety filled Kara as she looked upon the house. So many memories that she’d stopped thinking about for over two years.

The car pulled into the driveway, Kara noticing that her sisters dark green truck was already in the snow dusted driveway. Kara put the car in park, but didn’t get out straight away. She turned slightly in her seat to look at Lena, who was nervously glancing between the house and Kara.

“Are you ready? I promise I won’t be mad if you say you’re not comfortable with this. I can go get us a hotel room if you need it,” Kara spoke softly, tempted to reach forward and gently put a hand on Lena’s arm. She kept her hands securely in her lap, unsure of Lena wanted the physical touch.

Lena looked grateful at Kara’s words, turning to take a long look at the house. “I’m not good at family things… But I’d rather be here then alone. I’ll be okay, we can go inside.” Kara beamed at the good news, nodding excitedly. “Awesome!... And if you ever get uncomfortable, just let me know and we can call it a day.” Lena grinned and softly thanked her.

Kara turned off the car and got out, opening the door for Lena as she usually did. “You know you don’t have to always do that. Especially when we’re at your own house,” Lena commented with a much more comfortable smile now. Kara smirked and gave Lena’s comment a dismissive wave.

“Yeah, well it makes me feel a little better. Knowing I’m still doing my job, even when I don’t need to.” Kara led Lena across the snow covered lawn, and up to the front porch of the Danvers home. Excitement buzzed in Kara’s chest as she looked at the familiar door that she’d walked through thousands of times before when she was younger.

Kara knocked loudly against the front door, listening to a ruckus of movement inside the house. She felt Lena’s shoulder bump her bicep, the contact oddly comforting against her nerves. The door opened after only a few moments of waiting, the familiar scent of the house swarming Kara’s nose.

Eliza Danvers stood at the open door, a glowing smile spread wide across her face. No one said anything for a moment, the two Danvers just smiling at one another for what felt like forever. “Hey, mom,” Kara broke the silence with a giddy voice.

“My baby girl!” Eliza bolted through the door, bear hugging her daughter with the force of five grown men. Kara had to brace herself by putting a step backwards, grunting as the hug squeezed her ribs a little painfully.

“Careful, mom- I’m a little sore,” Kara quickly said, trying to keep any pain out of her voice. Eliza quickly loosened her grip, leaning backwards to look up to her daughter. She looked confused, trying to figure out what she meant.

Kara decided to quickly change the subject, not wanting to explain why she was sore. “This is Lena, the friend I told you about,” Kara looked to her very stiff looking boss. Eliza let go of Kara to turn to Lena. “Oh, hello! I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to ignore you. I just haven’t seen Kara in so long.”

Suddenly Lena was swept up into a hug, her eyes going comically wide as her arms stuck awkwardly out to the side. Her green eyes flickered to Kara, who had to use all her willpower not to laugh. Carefully Lena wrapped her arms around Eliza, looking as if she was afraid to hurt the older woman.

“It’s so good to meet you! I’m happy you two were able to make it for Christmas.” Eliza eventually let Lena go, stepping back and looking at the two girls. “Come on, it’s freezing outside,” Kara ushered her mother and Lena into the warm house.

“Alex! Your sister and her friend Lena are here!” Eliza walked through her house, followed by Lena and Kara. The house looked exactly as Kara remembered it, save for a few new pictures and small decorations.

The trio walked into the large living room, Kara instantly seeing the figure of her sister standing from where she was sitting on the couch. Kara paused, looking to Alex with an emotion that almost felt like fear settling low in her stomach.

Her hair was shorter- much shorter –than Kara last remembered. The deep reddish-brown caught the light coming through the windows, casting bright red highlights throughout the swept back style. 

Alex looked oddly older, even though it had only been a few years. From what she had told Kara so long ago, her job was incredibly stressful, and it seemed like that stress was wearing her down. 

She still had that intense stare that seemed to always been her go-to look never changed, her eyes locked onto Kara. A cold chill went down her spine, feeling everyone in the room looking at her. She could see Lena glancing between Alex and her, seemingly confused.

“Uh… Hey,” Kara said awkwardly. Alex looked her sister up and down silently, making Kara tense up even more. “You’d think all that time in Europe would give you at least a little bit of a tan.” Her tone was soft, the comforting sound of her voice instantly putting Kara at ease even though she wasn’t prepared for it.

“We both know I’m basically albino,” Kara replied back sassily, although there was still a wary tone in her voice. The unease of the room shifted, Kara slowly coming to terms that her sister was no longer mad at her.

Both the sisters moved towards each other at the same time, swooping quickly into a big hug. They held the hug for multiple seconds, the feeling of Alex’s arms around her so relieving. It was warm, and sent memories of happier days when they were younger flooding through Kara’s mind.

“I’m sorry about what I said when I last talked to you,” Kara whispered into Alex’s shoulder. “Me too… I’m so glad you were able to make it, we’ve all missed you a lot.” Kara’s heart swelled with happiness, taking a step back from Alex.

She turned to Eliza and Lena, her mother looking proud that her daughters were able to make up so quickly. Lena still looked a little confused, Kara having never mentioned her fight with her sister so long ago.

“Are you two hungry? From the looks of it you’ve both had a long day,” Eliza spoke up, gesturing to Kara and Lena. Kara instantly started nodding at the mention of food, Lena flashing her a smirk before politely agreeing. “That’d be really nice, thank you.”

Everyone ushered themselves into the kitchen, Lena sticking anxiously close to Kara, who defaulted into her protective stance around the smaller woman. Eliza led them, swooping towards the food cabinet to gather items for a meal. Alex followed behind Kara and Lena, watching them silently.

“You repainted,” Kara pointed out, noticing that the formally sky blue walls were now a warm grey. “I did! About a year and a half ago. The blue just didn’t look modern anymore. We also repainted the hallway and all the bedrooms.” 

Kara thought back to a year and a half ago. Where was she? She’d just gone to Europe six months ago, but what was the first place she worked in? It had to be France- or was she somewhere farther North?

“Did you pain my old room?” Kara asked as she moved to stand by the island in the middle of the kitchen. Alex moved to sit at one of the barstools right by her, Lena standing just in back of Kara.

“No, that was the one room we didn’t touch. I thought that maybe once you’ve got some time we could pick out a color together.” Kara smiled at her mother’s thoughtfulness. She was grateful that someone was thinking about her, but at the same time it’s not like she still lived there.

Before Kara could point out that her mother didn’t need to wait on her- she’d be waiting many more years if she wanted Kara to have some free time –Alex suddenly spoke up. “Lena, you’re very quiet… How do you and Kara know each other?”

Lena straightened up when Alex addressed her, looking past Kara to the elder Danvers daughter. “Oh, we work together,” Lena answered simply. Kara watched a mask of relaxation slide over Lena’s face. 

She no longer quirked her eyebrow at every sound anxiously, and her eyes no long wavered around the room, focusing completely on Alex. If Kara hadn’t been able to recognize the minute tension in Lena’s shoulders, she would have totally missed it, assuming it was Lena truly relaxing.

Eliza paused, turning to look Lena up and down. “Really? Please don’t take this the wrong way, but aren’t you a little thin to be in that line of work?” Her eyebrows furrowed on confusion. Kara almost laughed aloud, realizing that they thought Lena was also a personal security agent.

“No, she means I’m working for her company,” Kara explained. She still didn’t want to come right out and explain who she exactly was, fearing that if the other Danvers pieced together exactly why Kara was protecting Lena then they’d cast false judgement on her.

Eliza’s mouth dropped into an ‘oh’ shape, eyebrows raising slightly in understanding. “Oh, my bad. I totally misunderstood. I’m glad, I was honestly a little worried for you,” she chuckled, turning back to what was in her hand.

Lena glanced up to Kara, who met her eyes. Still that relaxed façade was on her face, but when Kara noticed her start to anxiously bite the inside of her cheek Kara decided to steer the conversation in a different direction. The last thing she wanted was for Lena to feel interrogated.

“So, Alex, how have you been doing at work?” Kara turned to her sister, who watched the interaction with unreadable eyes. At the shift of conversation, she seemed to drop any obvious thought of questioning the two women.

Alex sighed heavily, moving forward to rest her chin on a raised palm. “It’s honestly been total hell. We’re currently solving a pretty gruesome case…” Eliza suddenly stiffened and turned around. “Come on, girls… Let’s not ruin lunch with such terrible details!”

Kara scoffed at her mother’s sensitivity, but completely understood why she wanted to change the subject all over again. If she thought what her daughters actually did, she’d probably die from stress.

Lena’s eyebrows furrowed slightly, shifting to rest her hands on the island. That was a good sign to Kara, seeing she was starting to get a little more comfortable. “Case? Do you work for a detective agency?” Asking questions was even better. Kara swelled with pride and happiness, looking down to Lena.

“You could say that… I’m an independent investigator that often helps out with difficult cases for the detectives at my local police station,” Alex explained, giving a small shrug. She wasn’t exactly a cop, but she wasn’t exactly a private investigator. 

It was a job that was almost as dangerous as Kara’s, Alex telling her younger sister a few stories about suspects trying to go out suicide-by-cop, and she was caught in the gunfight. It was a very fun story to hear, but she knew now wasn’t the time to bring it up around her mother.

“You’ve solved how many cases now, Alex?... 30?” Kara tilted her head slightly, grinning with pride for her sister. “It’s gone up to 45 now, actually. They’ve all been incredibly interesting, but this current one is kicking my ass… I’m hitting a dead end with each lead, and it’s driving me nuts.”

Kara couldn’t help but smirk with slight amusement. It was very much like Alex to get so fixated on something like this. She was like a wild dog; latch on and never let go. It’s why she was able to solve so many cases. She never gave something up, and eventually her efforts always paid off.

“By the way, Lena,” Eliza suddenly spoke, pulling something from her pocket. “I didn’t have time to find a decent gift, but I thought it’d be kind of cute and funny to give you something for your first Christmas with the Danvers- it’s just tradition, we stopped giving gifts to each other a while ago, so you don’t have to worry about giving anything back.”

Lena looked surprised, instinctively extending her hand out when Eliza went to give her what she pulled from her pocket. “I’m sure you’ve only known Kara for a few months, but it means a lot when she invites someone over for Christmas. I just assumed you two were close if she brought you over.”

The item exchanged hands before Kara could make out what it was. Lena politely smiled to Eliza before looking down at what looked like a square slip of colored paper. Kara leaned forward slightly to see what rested in Lena’s palm, her face exploding in a heated blush when she realized what the item was.

It was a polaroid. A polaroid of Kara when she was maybe 6 years old. Her blonde hair was a wild mess, sticking out at every angle imaginable. It was short, maybe to her chin but you couldn’t entirely tell that with how messy it was.

There was chocolate all over 6-year-old Kara’s face, and she had the biggest, goofiest smile she could possibly manage. There was a half-eaten fudge bar on a stick, held at a weird droopy angle that screamed “I’m 6, so I’m only able to pay attention to one thing at a time”, the ice cream unknowingly about to slide right off the stick onto the ground.

It was embarrassing. A blast to the forbidden past. It was like showing a complete stranger pictures of your baby-self in the bath tub. No one should see that moment except for blood family- because they were the ones who took the picture and had to look at it afterwards.

“Mom!” Kara blurted out, jumping forward and reaching to grab the polaroid from Lena’s palm. Before she could, Lena had already tightly gripped onto it, yanking it away from Kara’s extending hand. She spun, her back no longer towards Kara, taking multiple steps away.

Lena was smiling wide- that smile of pure joy that normally would have made Kara’s chest warm if she wasn’t so embarrassed –laughing as she watched Kara jump for the photo again. “Give that back!” Kara ordered, but her serious words were discredited by her laughter.

Watching the joy and amusement on Lena’s face made Kara not want to actually try and get the embarrassing picture back, realizing how happy it made her. “You look so adorable!” Lena countered, looking at the photo in her hand again.

Kara vaguely registered that Eliza and Alex were laughing behind her, but she was too busy halfheartedly trying to grab the photo from Lena’s grasp again. “I don’t care, it’s embarrassing!” The laughter low in her chest was too strong to resist, her laughter contagiously making Lena start to giggle.

“But the chocolate- and the goofy smile!... No, hey, you can’t have it!” Kara had managed to grab Lena’s wrist in the gentlest hold. Lena’s laughter almost grew, her cheeks glowing a beautiful red as blood rushed to the surface of her skin.

Kara grabbed the front edge of Lena’s jacket that she’d yet to take off when she tried to pivot away, pulling her in close so she couldn’t pull back- although she really could if she wanted to, considering Kara’s grasp was feather light.

“Cute smile or not, I don’t think you’re allowed to have that power over me. Gimmie!” Kara slid her hand up Lena’s wrist, sliding their palms together so she could grab the polaroid. She almost had it, too, but suddenly Lena got a defiant look on her face, clasping their hands together for a moment.

She gave that sultry, mischievous smirk that told Kara she hadn’t given up just yet. “No,” she said in an oddly alluring voice. The sound of it made Kara freeze, trying to predict Lena’s next move, but it was futile. Lena suddenly dipped down, yanking her hand and the photo away from Kara’s, her loose grip slipping right off of Lena’s coat.

Lena was out of sight for a split second before appearing a few steps in back of Kara, moving away from her just in case she tried to grab the polaroid again. Kara had half a mind try again, but something inside her whispered for her to give up, to let Lena keep the picture. She wanted to know what her boss was going to do with it.

“Fine, keep the dang photo. At least it’s not a baby bath picture,” Kara said with a slight breathlessness. The group was still chuckling, smiling at the silly interaction. Lena had a triumphant look, slipping the polaroid carefully into the back pocket of her black jeans.

The air around the Danvers and Luthor relaxed as Kara moved back to lean on the kitchen island. Eliza returned to making them lunch, Alex offering to help.

The conversation was kept up between Alex and Eliza, but Kara went silent as she watched Lena watch the two older women work. She had an odd look on her face, like she was watching a strange interaction between two interesting animals.

Kara realized that she was observing her family, watching how they interacted and spoke to one another. Lena seemed to be in awe, watching Alex banter with her mother. Her green eyes were flickering wildly around, taking in as much as she could.

She silently did this the entire time the Danvers worked together, Kara getting sucked in to cutting some vegetables for the side salad Eliza was preparing. It took a minute or two of Kara working before she heard Lena speak up, asking if she could help with something.

“Oh, that’d be perfect! Could you slice these potatoes next to Kara? They’re for the main dish, just put them in this pot of water,” Eliza gratefully instructed, grabbing a bag of red potatoes and all the things Lena would need to help out.

Kara watched the foreign scene of Lena doing physical work. She’d never seen her lift a finger in any sort of effort, always getting things done for her. Lena was someone who exercised her brain, not her muscles it seemed.

When Lena glanced up from her potatoes, catching Kara watching her, she smiled reactively. “Are you having fun?” Kara asked in a low voice that only Lena could hear. Thankfully she nodded, her smile becoming wide and genuine again. “It’s very warm and welcoming here. I love it.”

The stress about Lena getting to interact with Kara’s family- the worry that she’d hate it or find something insulting about it –washed away, replaced with pure joy. It meant a lot seeing Lena enjoying herself, able to forget about work for the time being.

The women worked like this for a little bit longer before Eliza shoed the others away, now that the prep work was all done. Everyone watched her cook, sitting at the island. Lena was still quiet, struggling to find something to talk about, so Kara made sure to keep her included in the conversation.

Eventually the food was finished, the clock reading mid-afternoon by now. Kara was starving, considering they left before anything was open in New York, and they were so busy trying to get to Eliza’s house before 1pm, they hadn’t eaten since the night before.

As soon as the food was served Kara was devouring it, moaning into the first bite, despite the fact that it was burning the roof of her mouth. Lena scoffed next to her, Eliza making a comment about how Kara reminded her of a wild animal.

There wasn’t much conversation as everyone ate, all of them invested in their food. Kara got seconds before anyone else even managed to finish their first serving, commenting on how her mom’s cooking was always the best.

Once lunch was cleaned up and put away, the 4 of them moved to the living room. Kara and Lena sat on a large couch while the other 2 sat on a plush recliner and small love seat. “So, Lean, tell us a little more about you!” Eliza smiled wide, an expectant look in her eyes.

“Uh… Well…” Lena looked lost for a moment, visibly thinking about what to say as she tapped on her knee. “I’m the CEO of my family’s business back in National City,” Lena offered with a small shrug. “Oh, really? What business?”

“A business named after my family; L-Corp… We deal with genetics and DNA mostly. Me and Kara were actually just at New York working on partnering with Grant Genetics.” At Lena’s words, Alex instantly narrowed her eyes. She was visibly trying to think of something, staring at Lena with burning intensity. She obviously recognized the business name, just didn’t know why.

Eliza didn’t seem to even know the name, looking impressed regardless. “Ah, that explains why you and Kara work together. Does she help with security around your building?” Lena glanced to Kara, who was watching her sister trying to connect the dots.

A spike of anxiety rushed through Kara’s body, no longer worried about her mother’s reaction, but instead Alex’s. If she processed who Lena really was- what her family did –then Kara didn’t know what would happen, but she was terrified of it.

Kara working for ‘corrupt’ people in Alex’s mind was the exact reason they got into their bridge burning fight in the first place. “In a way, yes,” Lena answered simply, realizing that her answered hadn’t been vague enough as she noticed that Alex was looking intently at her.

There was a slow look of realization across her sisters face that made Kara suddenly jump up. “Does anyone want coffee? I could use the caffeine right now.” Eliza looked surprised at the sudden movement for a moment, before confusedly nodding. “I’ll have some, sure,” she answered.

There was a flash of anxiety- almost fear -in Lena’s face that Kara noticed when she looked down. But as soon as it was there, it was gone. Her cool, calm, collected eyes raised to meet Kara’s. “I’ll take a small cup, sure.” Kara flashed her a small, reassuring smile.

“Alex, come help me with all the cups?” Kara could see the steam practically coming off of her sister’s head. It felt like it was a better idea to take Alex away from their mother and Lena before she blew up, Kara recognizing that her anger was inevitable.

Alex wordlessly got up, following Kara into the kitchen. At first she thought Alex was going to start screaming right then and there, but Alex kept her cool. She brought all the cups down as Kara loaded the coffee maker with grounds and water, staring it.

She looked up just in time to see Alex throwing her thick winter jacket at her, having grabbed it from the mud room. “Out back- let’s go,” Alex stumbled through her tense jaw. Kara had been in an active war zone, and fought countless people in the streets of a city with a half broken body, and yet the fear of facing her sister compared to nothing Kara had ever felt before.

She quickly threw her long, thick over coat on before hurrying after Alex who was already walking through the glass back door that was on one side of the kitchen. The door shut tightly behind Kara, and Alex instantly spun around, her eyes wide, anger and other emotions swirling threw them.

“Seriously, Kara! Do you even know who you work for?!” Alex gestured to the house behind Kara. Her voice was raised, but she wasn’t yelling, obviously not wanting to alert their mother that there was some sort of problem.

“A Luthor, Kara- a fucking Luthor! Her family is one of the most famous family’s on the West Coast! They’re criminals- open, dangerous, corrupt criminals! Have you really stooped this low?” The words stung, Kara physically recoiling in pain. Her eyebrows furrowed, the fear and almost shame that she felt brought her back to their last conversation together.

But it wasn’t just terror and dishonor that Kara felt now; she felt anger that teetered on rage. It burned low in her stomach, smoldering its way into her chest and throat. Lena Luthor was many things, but a criminal wasn’t one of them.

“You don’t know her, Alex-“ Kara started, but her sister over bared her, talking over Kara’s words. “All I need to know is her last name. You’re working for the future leader of National City’s strongest mafia’s! You seriously brought her into mom’s house?!” The wall holding Kara’s anger and emotion back crumbled within seconds, blinding rage flooding through her.

Kara never liked to get violent towards people she cared about. She never once hit or touched her sister before, but the explosive rage that turned the edges of Kara’s vision blood red boiled up too fast for her to stop herself. Without warning she stepped forward and placed both her hands on Alex’s shoulders, shoving her as hard as she could.

Alex, not ready for the contact, stumbled and slipped on the slush covered back porch. She didn’t completely fall on her ass, able to catch herself on the railing that lined the porch with both arms, butt hovering less than a foot off the ground. She looked completely shocked, eyes wide and jaw ajar.

“I’m a grown fucking adult, Alex!” Kara growled, struggling to keep her voice at a low level. Kara never cussed unless she was really angry, her vulgar words making Alex balk, realizing how serious her younger sister was.

“I can form my own damn opinions about the people I work with. She’s different. Lena doesn’t want anything to do with her family’s legacy, or business. She actually wants to help- she wants to make a fucking difference!” Kara stood over her sister, pointing a jagged finger with each sentence.

Alex continued to hand on the railing, staring up at her sister in complete shock, and what looked like fear. “You were the one who taught me not to judge people on appearances- that includes names. Don’t you dare call Lena a criminal until you’ve seen her work, and seen how much she wants to help the world.”

Kara’s breath billowed out in thick puffs of steam. She could feel that her face, ears, and neck were red with heat. Her hands were shaking from adrenaline, and Kara was starting to scare herself with how angry she was getting. “Don’t you dare go insulting the woman I risked my life for,” Kara said in an extra low tone, pointing back to the glass door they’d just come from.

Alex swallowed hard, breathing just as heavily as her sister. She slowly got up, eyes still wide as she watched Kara warily. “You said you were sorry about what you said last time we talked, so why don’t you act like it? The world isn’t split into ‘good’ and ‘bad’, Alex. There’s people who’re in the middle- and don’t pretend like you and me both aren’t in that middle.”

Kara stared her sister dead in the eyes, her rage simmering down to light annoyance. “Okay… I’m sorry,” Alex practically whispered, glancing awkwardly away. It was rare that she admitted she was wrong, especially this fast.

“It’s just that… I’ve seen what the Immortals can do… I’ve seen the files… Look at the bodies… I just don’t want to see you get caught up in their fight.” Alex’s eyes furrowed with emotion, her hands flexing as she stood stiffly. Kara realized she was afraid for her; afraid that she’d get killed getting caught up in the middle of a war that’s not hers to be in.

Kara took a moment to close her eyes and let out a long breath, her shaking hands starting to become still. “My loyalty is to Lena, and Lena only… She’d never force me to fight for the Immortals. I fight for her, not her family.” This seemed to calm Alex down, nodding in understanding.

“Do you mean it when you say she’s not like the rest?” It was the last question that was on Alex’s mind. She needed to know this in order to be able to treat her properly; not biased despite her teachings to Kara. “If she could, she’d leave that family and life behind,” Kara answered straight away, 100% sure in her answer.

The two sisters looked between each other, Kara waiting to see if she had any more questions. Alex just didn’t want Kara to get angry like that again, waiting for her to break away from the conversation. Now that the anger was gone between them, Kara started to feel bad for shoving her sister like that.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to hurt you,” she mumbled, taking a step forward to check and make sure Alex was okay. “I’m fine, don’t worry. It scared me more than anything- you’re scary when you’re like that.” Kara frowned, regret washing through her. “I promise I’ll never do that again.” She hugged Alex tightly, relieved to feel her sister hug her back straight away.

They walked inside to see that the coffee was done. Kara paused, noticing that Lena was standing in the kitchen doorway. She must have seen everything- or almost everything –as well as heard their quiet yelling. Kara bashfully looked away, moving to go pour the steaming hot coffee into cups.

Alex also paused when she saw Lena. Her face was unreadable for a moment before she walked forward, hand out. “I realize now that you’re not who I thought you were… Let’s start over, yeah? I’m Alex Danvers.”

Lena looked from the offered hand then up to Alex’s red face from the cold and the fight. Her expression was also unreadable for a second- like she was trying to judge Alex’s true intentions. 

She seemed like she approved of them, because a heartbeat later Lena took Alex’s hands and shook them. “I’m Lena Luthor,” She said simply, smiling politely.

“I’m glad we can come to an understanding… Your sister has done an amazing job at making me feel like a part of her life, and I’d hate to lose that.” Kara paused in her coffee pouring to look at Lena.

Her eyes slid from Alex’s face over to Kara, studying her for a moment, an unreadable expression on her face. Kara wished she could figure those looks out. She wanted to be able to learn what each twitch of Lena’s face meant; to be able to read her like a book

“I’m glad to know you feel like one of the family,” Alex’s voice broke through Kara’s thoughts, silently noticing the interaction between her sister and Lena. “I’ll help Kara with the coffee, if you don’t mind,” Lena suggested, dropping Alex’s hands. Alex nodded in understanding, glancing back to her sister.

“Are we okay?” Alex checked, eyebrow raising slightly. Another wave of shame over her anger washed through Kara, but she nodded silently. Alex seemed satisfied, moving past Kara to go sit with their mother in the living room.

Kara turned away from Lena, looking back at the coffee cups. She heard Lena move around behind her, half expecting her to start questioning her on what exactly happened. Instead Lena silently reached from behind Kara, placing a warm hand over the top of Kara’s cold one, which rested against the counter top. Slight tingles spread across the surface of Kara’s skin, feeling the contact.

“Are you okay?” Lena’s voice was soft, filled with sweet concern for her friend. Kara frowned down at the counter, her eyebrows furrowing a little. “Yeah, I’m okay… I just… Lost control for a moment.” She knew Lena had seen the figh; had seen her push her sister down.

Lena was silent for a moment, Kara focused on the heat that she could feel radiating off of Lena against her back- even through her coat. “Let’s just take a moment, so you can really calm down. Everything will be alright, okay?”

Kara moved to turn in place, the back of her hips pressing against the counter. Lena was close to her- incredibly close –looking up at her with a slightly concerned face. “Yeah, I know. It’s just… Embarrassing… I’ve never lost control like that.” Kara took a deep breath, trying to calm her heavily beating heart.

“Here, just try to forget about it for a bit,” Lena practically whispered. She reached up with both arms and wrapped them around Kara’s neck. Kara was only 2 inches taller than Lena, so it wasn’t hard to bend down when she felt Lena starting to pull her head forward.

Kara felt her face press against the nape of Lena’s neck, her arms surrounding her head. It was warm, and instantly comforting. When Kara inhaled, the scent of vanilla and berries flooded her senses. She was thrown back to three weeks ago, when they were in the safe house and Kara was hurt. 

She didn’t feel the pain, but instead felt the safety and reassurance. As the memory flashed through Kara’s mind, she reached forward with her own arms and wrapped them tightly around Lena’s waist. She subconsciously pulled her as close as possible, trying to bury her face deeper into Lena’s neck.

Kara never wanted to let go. It was so warm, and it felt so good hugging Lena. She felt fingers being slowly pulled through her hair, unable to suppress the heavy sigh that ended in the smallest moan at the sensation.

They stood like that for multiple minutes, neither of them pulling away. The hug was working, taking Kara’s mind off of everything around them. She was solely focused on Lena, silently wondering if she could somehow squeeze themselves into one being.

Kara switched her stance, spreading her legs a little wider. With strong arms Kara pulled Lena into her space completely, Lena stumbling between her legs with a small gasp of surprise. 

She squeezed her arms around tighter, feeling Lena’s muscles in her back and sides tense for a moment. Kara shifted her head, eyes closed so that her nose was pushing against Lena’s neck, their chests pressed together and Lena’s arms shifting just slightly so she was holding Kara more securely.

It felt good being able to feel Lena’s heart beating against her chest, Kara noticing the quick rhythm. She wondered what was going through Lena’s mind, wondered if she was enjoying this as much as her. Kara’s last question was answered quickly when she felt Lena’s face nuzzling into her hair, causing her to smile against Lena’s neck.

They continued to stand there until Eliza called across the house, “Did you guys get lost in the kitchen or something?” The voice of her mother brought Kara’s comfort to a screeching halt. The world that her and Lena were lost in shattered, bringing them back to reality.

It was jarring, Kara suddenly looking up, forcing Lena to loosen her arms. “Oh- that’s right –the coffee.” Kara turned her torso to look back at the still steaming cups of coffee in back of her. Lena sighed lightly, causing Kara to look back at her. They still hadn’t let go, Kara’s arms around Lena’s torso and Lena’s around her neck.

The sound of Eliza’s footsteps is what caused both of them to jump to attention, Lena taking multiple steps back until she bumped into the kitchen island. Kara stood up straight, closing her legs together and moving to grab the cream and sugar.

Eliza appeared quickly, looking between Kara and Lena with confusion. “Is everything okay?” Her eyebrow raised, looking to Kara as she pulled the creamer from the fridge. “Yeah, we just got caught up in talking. Do you still like your coffee with extra cream and a little bit of sugar?” 

Kara turned to look at her mother fully, who still glanced between the two of them with suspicion. “Yeah, just like your sister… I don’t know how you can put so much sugar into your coffee; makes me get a cavity just thinking about it.” The tone shifted at Eliza decided not to question what exactly was going on in the kitchen.

“I like sweet things, I can’t help it!” Kara said defensively, laughing. Lena grinned at the interaction, once again noticeably observing the family dynamic. “How do you like your coffee, Lena? You’re the tie breaker,” Eliza questioned with a chuckle towards her daughter.

Kara knew the answer before Lena could even say anything. “Oh, well I actually like my coffee black. Wakes me up a little bit better than when there’s something mixed in with it.” Kara had seen Lena drink black coffee almost every morning back in National City. She knew Lena was extra stressed when she either ordered or poured herself a second cup in one day.

The answer wasn’t what Eliza wanted, her face comically dropping. Kara started laughing, her mother’s playfully distressed face breaking into a smile as well. Lena also broke into a big smile, looking between Eliza and Kara.

Once the coffee was made, and Kara could hand two cups to Lena, they all went back into the living room where Alex sat, reading something that was on her phone. She looked up seeing the trio walking into the room, eyes brightening at the sight of Kara coming over with her cup.

Everyone moved back to their respective seats, Kara sitting with a leg tucked under her. Lena crossed her legs and lounged an arm across the back of the couch with as much relaxation as she could muster in such a new house.

They talked some more, Eliza reminiscing about the past years where they all spent Christmas together. She mentioned to Lena how they stopped doing presents a while ago when it came to family- only giving them to guests who came along with either Kara or Alex –the Danvers preferring their company rather than gifts.

The day passed by slowly, and eventually the conversation died down enough for Kara to suggest they watch some movies. Eliza had a large collection of DVD’s, everyone deciding to pick one and set it on the coffee table to choose which movie to watch.

Eliza picked a cheesy Christmas movie, Kara picked an action adventure, Alex picked a horror, and Lena picked a romance. With all the movies picked out, they all had to vote on one, but they weren’t allowed to pick their own.

On the count of three all of them pointed their hands to Lena’s romance movie. It was about two strangers saving each other from toxic situations; the woman had an abusive boyfriend, and the man was stuck in mental purgatory due to mental health issues and a monotonous schedule that made life boring.

They promised, as random strangers, to help each other get out of their bad circumstances and to keep checking up on one another every week. They had to hold each other to their word about helping themselves. Each week they checked in on one another until their bond grew stronger.

Over time, and with lots of healing, the two strangers became something more to each other, creating a bond that was unbreakable. The catch was neither of them realized the feelings of the other, even though they heavily flirted both on the phone and in person.

The entire movie was about making the audience want to scream, “Just kiss already!” before finally, at the very end of the movie, they admitted their feelings and kissed. Eliza was openly crying as the credits scrolled across the screen.

Alex just scoffed, looking slightly unimpressed with the ending, complaining that they should have shown more of their romantic relationship, rather than ending it right after the kiss. Kara just stared at the screen for a long moment, wondering if such strong romantic bonds could be made that quickly.

“That was a beautiful movie. Good pick, Lena!” Eliza said as she got her tears under control. She stood after a moment, glancing at the time. “Should we start making dinner? I’ve got something really tasty planned.”

Kara of course agreed right away, Lena scoffing at her, but nodded her head as well. They all went back into the kitchen, making a repeat of earlier that day. Kara was happy to notice that Lena offered her help a lot more quickly than she did as lunch, seemingly more comfortable.

Dinner went by fast, everyone enjoying their meals before cleaning up. “Oh, Kara,” Eliza spoke up as she closed the containers of leftovers. Kara looked up from scrubbing a pan under the sink, looking up expectantly. “I forgot to mention that the air mattress popped last year, so I think you and Lena might have to share a bed.”

Kara’s first thought was to sleep on the couch, but after sitting on it for so many hours she already knew it was too small for anyone to comfortably sleep. Even with her magic trick of being able to fall asleep in almost any situation, Kara knew her ‘old’ 28-year-old back couldn’t handle the couch.

She looked over to Lena, who had an odd look on her face again, eyes focused on the counter ahead of her. “Do you mind, Lena? I can sleep at the foot of the bed if you need me to,” Kara offered, hoping that Lena wasn’t offended that she didn’t get to sleep in her own bed.

“I, uh… No, it’s all right, I don’t mind sharing the bed. I’m just worried I might kick you in my sleep or something,” Lena replied, slightly biting her lip in worry. Kara scoffed, giving a dismissive wave. “Don’t worry, Alex was a kicker when she’s younger. I can handle it.”

Despite her casual words, Kara felt slightly anxious to sleep next to her boss. Not even 3 days ago Kara would have been screaming at herself to keep things professional… But Lena herself said that she wanted to be friends, and that she didn’t mind Kara relaxing a little, as long as it wasn’t around clients or people who would frown upon their friendly relationship.

“Perfect! Then the room is all set up, whenever you girls want to go to bed.” It was well past dark outside, and Kara could feel the exhaustion from being up for over 24 hours settling in. She wanted to go to bed right then and there, but she held her fatigue back for just a big longer.

“I call dibs on the shower first,” Kara called, Alex complaining in the background about how she wanted to shower first. The two sisters bantered back and forth playfully before Alex gave up, knowing her stubborn sister wasn’t going to give up her spot.

Victorious, Kara turned to Lena who was watching them with an amused smile. “Here, follow me; I can show you to our room. It used to be my old room when I still lived here.” Kara gestured for Lena to follow her, taking her down a hallway to the very last door on the right.

When Kara opened the door, it felt like she stepped into a past. A queen size four poster bed stood in the center of the room, the walls still painted the same red, and her furniture still all in the same place. Kara moved into the center of the room, turning to look back at Lena.

She was looking around in silent awe, studying all the trophies, ribbons, knick-knacks, and posters all over the walls and shelves. “Do you like Wonder Woman?” Lena asked in an amused tone, gesturing to the largest poster that was pinned up on the center of the wall.

Kara felt herself blush in slight embarrassment, forgetting all about the poster. She had a quiet obsession about the Amazonian woman, having loved her ever sense she first saw her in a comic book. “As a young teenager, yeah. I really loved comic books when I was younger, and she was my favorite character out of everyone else.”

Lena smiled sweetly, staring at the poster for a moment before looking back to Kara with a giggle. An intrusive thought suddenly popped into Kara’s head. She blurted it out before processing if it was appropriate to say or not. “You know; you look a lot like Wonder Woman. You’ve got the same hair, and I’m certain you could rock her outfit.”

Surprise flooded Lena’s features, her eyebrows raising and her eyes going slightly wider. Kara was about to take it all back when suddenly Lena started to giggle, blushing vaguely. “I think that’s one of the sweetest things someone has ever said to me.”

Kara raised an eyebrow, her horror over what she just said quickly being replaced with something that almost felt like offense for Lena. “Really? Well now I’m going to make it my goal to top that every single time I compliment you.” Kara smiled seeing Lena blush even more.

There was a sudden knock on the doorframe that made Kara quickly look past Lena, her eyes landing on Alex in the doorway. “Hey, can you hurry up so I can take a shower?” Her words were sarcastic, a playful glint in her eyes. Alex glanced between Lena and Kara, noticing the surprised looks on their faces- like they almost got caught doing something they shouldn’t have.

Kara could tell that Alex was just about to ask them what was going on, so she quickly answered her playful banter. “Yeah, but only if you help me bring our bags in from the car,” Kara answered with a sassy shake of her head. She stepped past Lena to start going outside.

“But it’s so cold out!” Alex huffed, allowing Kara to walk past her. “Well if we do it quickly then the exercise will warm you up and then you won’t be cold,” Kara laughed as she quickly stopped to grab her long over coat.

Lena had also followed Alex and Kara, standing a little ways behind them. “Would you like my help?” Lena suggested, tilting her head. “It’s not much, don’t worry, Lena. We might actually be able to get it all in one go if Alex stops complaining so much.”

Alex led the way out of the house, both sisters stepping past Lena. Kara made it a casual point to brush her finger tips across Lena’s forearm in a sort of silent, reassuring thanks. Lena flashed her a smile, but regardless looked unsatisfied that she couldn’t help.

There was a fresh layer of snow covering everything by about an inch. Kara shivered despite her long coat, unlocking the car so she could open the door to pop the trunk. “So how badly are you hurt?” Alex asked, waiting behind the car.

Kara pulled the trunk lever on the driver side door, popping up to give her sister a quizzical look. Her nose was already turning red, and Kara figured her own cheeks and nose were starting to grow ruby. “I’ve seen you carry four full suit cases all at once- not to mention all the times you took the groceries into the house in one go as well –so how badly are you hurt that you can’t do that again?”

Damn Alex and her amazing detective skills. Kara knew there was no point trying to hide her injuries, Alex having already figured her out. “Not too bad,” She casually said as she walked around to grab one of Lena’s bags.

Alex openly watched her before suddenly reaching forward and poking her right shoulder. “Is it your arm? You’re not using it like you normally do.” Kara paused, the suit case teetering on the edge of the trunk. She looked at her sister with an expression of disbelief.

“You’re very nosey, do you know that?” Kara scoffed, the noise coming out in a steaming cloud. Alex smirked, nodding. “I do… But that doesn’t answer my question.” Kara sighed, pulling the suit case completely out of the trunk.

“Dislocated shoulder, 4 broken ribs, and a bruised pelvis,” Kara listed easily. Alex’s jaw dropped slightly, looking Kara up and down in disbelief. “Jesus! Are you the woman of steel or something?!” She also grabbed a duffle bag, putting the strap over her shoulder.

Kara laughed at the exclamation, giving a slight shrug. “It was 3 weeks ago. We got into a car accident while in the middle of a car chase. My side got hit, and I wasn’t wearing a seat belt.” Alex took in all the details, looking as if she was listening to someone debrief her on a case file.

“Does mom know?” She asked, grabbing the third and last bag out of the trunk. “No, and she won’t,” Kara replied with a pointed look to her sister. “She doesn’t need that stress in her life.” Alex nodded in agreement, watching Kara close the trunk and lock the rental car before walking into the house with her.

Lena was waiting just inside the front mud room, her eyes landing straight on Kara to make sure she wasn’t carrying more than she should with her wounded shoulder. She reached a hand out, offering to take the case Kara carried in her left hand.

“Here, Alex is carrying most of it,” Kara stubbornly said, dodging out of the way of Lena’s reach so that she was forced to help Alex instead. Lena rolled her eyes at Kara, but still offered her help to Alex, who gave her one of the bags she had.

The trio took all the luggage to Kara’s childhood room, dropping it off at the end of the bed. “Great, now go take a shower so I can,” Alex sarcastically demanded. She left the room as Kara scoffed at her, but Kara didn’t move to grab her spare clothing straight away.

“Would you like to shower first? I can wait,” Kara offered as she turned to Lena. “That’s sweet, but I don’t mind just waiting till morning. I don’t really like going to bed with wet hair.” She had her phone in her hand, glancing down at it, obviously waiting to call someone.

Kara felt her curiosity spike at who Lena wanted to talk to, but she wrangled it down quickly. “Okay, no problem. I’ll be done in a few minutes.” She grabbed her spare clothing quickly, trotting into the bathroom that was down the hallway.

The shower was hot and refreshing, Kara letting herself relax for a few minutes under the steaming stream. Her hip still ached from sitting all day, and even with the avoidance of using her injured arm Kara’s ribs were dully throbbing.

Once she thoroughly washed her hair, Kara got out and dried off. It was cold in the bathroom, despite the steaming shower. Kara felt a shiver run down her back as she quickly scrunched her hair till it wasn’t dripping wet, pausing for a moment to look herself over in the mirror. 

The deep purple bruises that had once spread from Kara’s hip up to her side- splotchy around her ribs and shoulder, were now an ugly brown and yellow. They were healing fast, but not fast enough for Kara’s taste.

She examined her body for a moment, looking at all the old familiar scars from her time in the military, wondering if they’d ever fade. As Kara turned her torso to examine her back to follow the history of her scars, the tight muscles under her skin shifted and flexed. Kara was very heavily muscled, all thanks to her heavy workout routine she did almost every morning and night when she had the energy.

Eventually the cold was too much to bare, Kara drying off a few more stray drops before throwing on her PJ’s for the night; a pair of black sweat pants and a thick, tight sweater that she’d gotten long ago in Germany. It said something in German that she couldn’t translate, but it was a comfortable top that she could easily sleep in.

Kara quickly brushed her teeth before she stepped out of the bathroom with her dirty clothing, calling down across the hall to Alex that the bathroom was open. Going back to her room she saw that Lena was sitting on the tall queen bed, still on the phone with someone.

Her green eyes quickly flickered up to look at Kara. The irritation that was in her face seemed to lessen as she saw her body guard. Kara didn’t miss when her eyes swept up and down her entire body for a split second before she looked away entirely.

Kara set her dirty clothing aside as she worked on finding a hair tie. “Yes well I already told you months ago that I didn’t feel like doing anything this Christmas- You know I don’t celebrate it,” Lena said in an annoyed tone. Kara usually didn’t like to be in the same room as someone who was having a private conversation, but something kept her standing at the end of the bed.

“I’m on a business trip, James… I don’t know what to tell you.” Ah. She was talking to James, then. That familiar annoyance at the thought of Lena’s ‘friend’ started to simmer in Kara’s stomach as soon as she heard the name.

Lena paused to listen to James talk, his voice a deep mumble to Kara. “That’s not how that works, James. You don’t own me, and you most certainly can’t tell me what to do.” Kara felt a muscle in her jaw twitch, her eyes locked into the hair tie that was being held between tense fingers.

“Listen, it’s late and I don’t want to be having this conversation with you all over again. I told you that I didn’t want to keep doing that kind of stuff, and I’ll tell you again. Whatever you thought was happening between us is pure delusion on your part…. Are you done now? Can I go to bed?” Kara looked up to see Lena had a glazed over, unimpressed look as she visibly wasn’t listening to James speaking.

Kara had no idea what was going on between them, but the words Lena spoke sent a flutter of hope and happiness through her. Hope for what? Kara had no idea- all she knew is that she got excited at the thought of Lena no longer being so involved with such a toxic, dangerous person.

She only had to meet the man once to know he wasn’t someone Lena should be hanging around. Of course Lena is a grown adult, and Kara would never try to control her like that, but she never liked James. She’d thought it many times; James is a liability that she could not afford, and knowing Lena was starting to distance herself from him made things even easier for Kara to do her job.

Lena listened to James for a moment before heavily sighing. “Whatever, I’m done with this. Good bye, James.” She didn’t even wait for a response, taking the phone away from her ear and hanging up. Lena paused for a moment, taking in a deep breath with her eyes closed before turning to Kara.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean for you to hear that.” Lena frowned slightly, looking like she felt a little awkward. Kara realized she had been standing there staring the entire time. She lurched to start moving, taking the hair tie and pulling her hair into a bun.

“You don’t have to apologize,” She said as she wrapped the tie, “Is everything okay between you guys?” Kara looked up, her blue eyes meeting Lena’s green ones. She looked like she was visibly contemplating something before suddenly letting go.

Lena shook her head, frowning down at the bed. “Not really… I got caught up in something I thought would be fun, but turns out it’s just a big headache that won’t go away.” Kara furrowed her eyebrows, dropping her hands to her side.

She moved to go sit on the opposite side of the bed, facing Lena as she leaned back against one of the bed posters. “You got caught up in something with James?... Gerrard mentioned you and James were… Uh… Sexually active.”

A dark look passed over Lena’s face, obviously not liking that Gerrard was talking about her like that. She gritted her teeth for a moment before nodding. “We had something casual going for a few months, but then one day he started to get possessive.”

Lena paused for a moment before openly deciding to spill out all her thoughts. “I don’t really like who I am around James. I feel so animated- so fake. I can’t be my real self around him, because when I was he said I was boring and needed to loosen up.”

Kara felt her dislike for James turn into full distain. Her eyes darkened and narrowed, and she could feel every muscle in her jaw tighten as she clenched it. “That’s complete bullshit,” Kara growled in a dark tone.

Lena froze, staring at Kara with a look of fear over her sudden anger. “You’re the most interesting person I know. I’ve never wanted to figure someone out more than you. You’re mysterious, and intriguing…. When I first met you at The Nightingale with James, I thought you were just some rich little girl who was completely full of herself… But when I saw you- the real you –in Rome I realized I was completely wrong.”

Kara reached forward and grabbed Lena’s hand, much like how she did when they spoke in the kitchen. “James doesn’t deserve you, Lena… You’re a goddess, and he’s just a parasite.” Her face softened as she watched Lena stare down at their hands before looking to meet Kara’s eyes.

Tears noticeably started to fill Lena’s eyes, making them look glassy. “Have I ever told you that you’re the sweetest person I’ve ever met?” Lena whispered, her voice quivering with emotion. Kara smiled softly, snorting gently through her nose. “You might have said that before, yeah… Are you okay?”

Lena nodded confidently at the question, sniffling as she fought to keep tears from falling down her cheeks. “Let’s try and forget about this for tonight,” Kara said, repeating a version of what Lena had said to her earlier that day.

Kara moved closer and hugged her arms around Lena’s neck, slowly lowering both of them so they were laying on the bed. Lena wrapped her arms around Kara’s waist without hesitation, but she didn’t squeeze too hard, being warry of Kara’s injuries.

Once again Kara could feel the warmth enveloping her as she hugged Lena, but this time instead of feeling herself being comforted, she felt Lena falling into the trance of relaxation just like she had earlier. It felt good holding Lena, knowing that her touch was helping in some way.

They hugged for a long moment. When Kara loosened her arms to check on Lena, she felt Lena move closer, pushing her face into Kara’s chest. She smirked at the movement, placing her arms back to where they were originally.

When it became clear that Lena wasn’t going to let go after almost a whole hour, Kara started to chuckle. “I don’t mind going to bed like this, but at least give me a moment to take my contacts out and close the door,” Kara mumbled.

Lena groaned in dissatisfaction, but her arms released themselves from around Kara’s torso. Kara laughed some more, scooting off of the bed so she could quickly run to the now unused bathroom to remove her contacts.

Blindly she stumbled back to her room, having done that hundreds of times before when she still lived in the house. Kara closed the door and shut off the light to the room, enveloping them into darkness- save for a night light that lit up the floor of the room so that you didn’t step on something if you ever needed to go to the bathroom during the night.

Kara crawled back into bed, feeling Lena’s hand grasp the front of her shirt to pull her closer. “You’re really warm,” Lena whispered so quietly that Kara almost missed it. “I’ve been told I’m a space heater… Let me know if you get too hot.”

Lena only hummed in acknowledgement, her face once again snuggling against Kara’s chest. Having Lena in her arms felt oddly good, their legs easily intertwining together so that Lena was pressed practically flush against Kara.

There was a light tingling at each point of contact on the surface of Kara’s skin, her mind buzzing with excitement. She had no idea why she loved having Lena touching her like this, but she was so tired that she didn’t even bother questioning it.

It didn’t take long for Lena to fall asleep, her breathing getting heavy, and her slightly tensed muscles relaxing. Kara moved to rest her chin on the top of Lena’s head, sighing as she also started to sleepily relax. “Good night, my mysterious girl,” Kara whispered almost silently, smiling to herself before drifting off to sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for all the typos, I'm running on very little sleep.
> 
> Happy Holidays everyone!  
> -Aries


	7. Chapter 7: Fledgling Feelings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kara gets caught in a snowball of feelings for her boss.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (NSFW WARNING: Scenes that are not suitable for minors/people who don't want to read NSFW stuff/people who are not in the right setting to read NSFW stuff will have '~~~~~~~' before/after them- because centering the scenes wasn't noticeable enough -so you can skip over them if need be... Maybe I should bold the NSFW scenes next time? Let me know what works best.)  
> Merry Christmas to those who celebrate such a holiday! This is my gift to you guys. Thank you so much for the overwhelming love on this fanfic, it makes me want to write so much more.
> 
> Stay safe out there, everyone  
> -Aries

When Kara awoke, she was vaguely aware that she no longer felt the warmth of Lena. For a few minutes she silently wondered if she was back in her hotel room in New York, or even in her apartment at National City. Kara hugged the pillow her face was buried into, taking a deep breath as disappointment settled in her chest for a moment.

Her breathe paused for a moment when she got the faintest scent of vanilla and berries. Kara inhaled deeper, chasing the smell with her nose. She slid over to where Lena had slept, pressing her face deeper into the many pillows. As the scent got stronger, every muscle in Kara’s body relaxed.

She laid like that for a long time- almost half an hour –before the noise of people moving around in the kitchen caught her attention. At first Kara didn’t want to get up, ignoring the sound. When she heard Lena’s musical laughter, however, Kara was drawn to sit up.

She rubbed the sleep from her eyes, stretching slowly and carefully. It was cold outside of the warm bed, Kara’s bare feet freezing as they touched the wooden floor of her bedroom. She shivered, grabbing her glasses so she could look through her suit case for socks.

Once her feet were protected with thick wool socks, and her hair was quickly brushed through to get it under control from its messy bun, Kara made her way out of her old bedroom. It wasn’t too early in the morning, maybe 8:30am.

Kara followed the noise of Lena’s voice, appearing in the doorway of the kitchen. Lena was sitting at the middle island, a cup of her usual black coffee in her hands. Eliza was sitting across the island, a stack of photo albums next to her. She had one open, showing Lena a picture.

Eliza’s back was to Kara, so she couldn’t see her come in, but Lena looked up straight away. She was in the middle of a small laugh, but when her bright green eyes- which appeared to be considerably lighter in the mornings –landed on Kara her small smile grew into a huge grin that reached from one ear to the other.

“What embarrassing thing are you showing her now, mom?” Kara asked in a gravelly voice. It always sounded a little rougher in the mornings. Eliza turned around to smirk at her daughter, moving the album to show a picture of her as a child once again.

This picture wasn’t as bad as the one Lena was given yesterday; it was of Alex and Kara, Alex hugging her sister roughly around the neck. They were young teenagers here, Alex having just started middle school. Kara was wearing dorky glasses, and she had braces. They looked to be having a great time in the photo, seemingly at some family vacation.

“Just the time we went to the New Mexico caves, and you were terrified that a bat was going to attack you,” Eliza replied, watching Kara look at the picture. “Couldn’t you wait for at least next Christmas to show Lena all of these?” Kara grumped, going to the still full coffee pot to get herself some as well.

“No, next Christmas is for the _real_ baby pictures. This is just 5 years old and up,” Eliza replied sarcastically, laughing at her daughter’s playful dismay. Kara moved to sit next to Lena who was still grinning sweetly to her.

She moved to gently bump Kara’s right shoulder with hers. “Hey, you were cute as a kid, so I’m not complaining.” Lena giggled, the noise contagious. “Are you saying I’m not cute now?! How rude,” Kara replied sarcastically through her own giggling.

Lena shook her head, her currently ice green eyes lifting to look all over her face. “Cute doesn’t quite fit… Beautiful is a much better way to describe you.” Kara’s laughter froze, her jaw half open. The compliment took a moment to kick in, but when it did Kara felt her entire face get hot with a blush.

Kara cleared her throat, having to break away from Lena’s intense eye contact, looking down at her own coffee cup in her hands. She could see the almost seductive smirk in the corner of her eye, but Kara refused to look up.

Lena returned her attention to the picture album, commenting on a picture of young Alex. Eliza, who watched the entire interaction with the faintest smile on her face, also returned to the pictures. Kara was too busy trying to get her fluttering heart under control to pay much attention. There was something about a beautiful woman also call her beautiful that really made Kara freak out.

Shortly after Eliza finally put the picture albums away Alex came out of her room. Her eyes were half lidded, and she had a very sleepy look on her face. “Good morning,” Kara called as soon as she saw her sister, smiling even wider when Alex just shot her a disgruntled look.

Alex had never been a morning person, compared to Eliza and Kara. She took after her father in that sense. Eliza chuckled at her daughter’s grumpiness, pointing out that there was still coffee in the pot. Alex grunted her thanks, shuffling over to the other side of the kitchen.

“Can I ask something?” Lena asked, glancing to Eliza and Kara. “Of course! What’s on your mind?” Eliza asked, leaning forward onto her elbows as she cradled her mug to her chest. “There were two people in the pictures with Kara and Alex a lot. Were they friends of yours?”

Eliza looked confused for a moment before getting up to pull out an album one last time. She set it in front of Lena, who started to flip through the pictures until she got to one. It was a picture of Alex, Kara, and the man Eliza introduced Lena earlier, Jeremiah- her now deceased husband and Alex’s father.

To the far right of the picture, right next to a beaming Kara, were two adults that Lena had never been introduced to when Eliza was showing her the pictures. The woman looked almost exactly like Kara did in present day, except Kara had the same jaw and tall build like the man.

Kara instantly recognized the two figures whom she rarely thought about, their faces something she used to dream about when she was much younger. “Oh, those are my parents,” Kara answered simply.

A dark look passed over Eliza’s face, her eyes snapping away from the picture and to Kara’s face. “I wish you would stop calling them that. It’s a title that they don’t deserve,” Eliza growled through a clenched jaw. Even Alex had paused to stare at the picture, an oddly distant look in her eyes.

Lena looked incredibly confused, looking to Kara with furrowed eyebrows. “Your parents?... Is Eliza not your mother?” Eliza took the book off of the counter, closing it with a loud _thump_. Kara watched her for a moment before turning to answer Lena’s question.

“Eliza and Jeremiah are my adoptive parents; they took me in when I was 13. My birth parents are Alura and Zor-El, but they’re… Gone.” Eliza huffed and stood, walking out of the room to put the album away for good. Lena continued to look confused, now glancing to the blank-faced Alex and Kara.

“Oh… I didn’t know your parents had died… I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to bring this up.” Lena frowned, glancing back when Eliza came back from putting the book away. “I wish those bastards were dead… I loved them like they were siblings, but when they left Kara and never came back I promised myself I’d beat the soul right out of their bodies.” Eliza had that look of motherly rage; no one messed with her daughters, not even their birth parents.

“Hey, it happened a long time ago, mom. I’m not holding onto the past, you don’t have to, either,” Kara replied calmly. Every time her birth parents came up, she had to say the same thing to calm Eliza down. It worked just like usual, Eliza’s tense shoulders starting to relax, and the anger in her face fading.

Kara looked to Lena, who seemed to be retreating into her shell, heavily veiled worry and distress in her face. Kara, not wanting her to pull up her walls, quickly reached forward and placed a gentle hand on Lena’s forearm. Lena flinched, but didn’t take her arm away, staring down at Kara’s hand.

“You’re allowed to ask questions, you know. Like I said, I’m over it. It was a long time ago, and I think everyone but my mother has come to terms with it.” Kara offered a reassuring smile, Lena looking up at her face with the same worried eyes.

Lena gave a small nod before turning away, still obviously feeling awkward for bringing up such a sensitive topic accidentally. “Do you mind if I go take a shower?” She asked the room. Kara internally frowned, hating that Lena felt the need to run away.

Regardless, she didn’t stop her, knowing that she probably just needed some space to get her anxious nerves under control. “Yeah, it’s not a problem. Here, I’ll show you how the shower works,” Kara replied, standing from the bar stool.

Lena followed her as she took her back to the bathroom, which had fresh towels placed there earlier that morning. Kara pulled the curtains back on the shower-tub combination explaining how to control the temperature, as well as how to turn the shower head on.

Lena listened quietly, standing closely next to Kara as she explained everything. When Kara was done, she looked to Lena with concern. “Are you okay? Really, you didn’t do anything wrong. I know mom got mad, but it wasn’t at you. She just has some very strong feelings about the situation.”

Kara watched as Lena took a deep breath, closing her eyes as she did. She looked beautiful, her face slowly starting to react. She didn’t have a mask on- that Kara could tell –her face showing the entirety of her emotion.

“I just feel bad. I didn’t mean to ruin the conversation,” Lena admitted, slightly frowning. Suddenly Kara swept Lena up into a tight hug. She hated seeing her so upset, especially over something that wasn’t her fault. Lena tensed for a split second, surprised by the hug, before her arms wrapped just as tightly around Kara.

“You didn’t ruin anything, Lena… Please don’t tell yourself that,” Kara spoke just above a whisper into the side of Lena’s head. She felt Lena’s fingers curling into her German sweatshirt, gripping onto her tightly.

They stood like that for a long moment before Lena finally pulled away. Her face was a little red, and she wiped at her nose, but she didn’t have that look of worry in her face anymore. “Thank you, Kara… I won’t take long with my shower; I just need a moment.”

Kara gave her a soft, sweet smile, nodding. She pointed out the shampoo and conditioner Lena could use before they both left the bathroom- Lena breaking left to go grab some spare clothes from the bedroom. Kara went back into the kitchen, where Alex and Eliza were still standing.

“Is everything alright?” Alex asked, looking concerned as she glanced past Kara to the hallway in back of her. Kara nodded, returning to her seat. “Yeah, she just felt bad about bringing up Alura and Zor-El.” Eliza’s shoulders slumped slightly, looking down at the island. “I was a little aggressive about that, wasn’t I?”

Kara didn’t want to come straight out and agree that her mother hadn’t helped the situation. So instead she just sighed while saying, “Let’s just drop the topic… Do we want to do something fun today?” Eliza sighed, but silently agreed to change the subject.

“Do you think Lena can ice skate?” Alex offered, grinning mischievously to try and change the mood of the room. Kara, understanding where Alex was going with this, smirked. “If not, I can teach her… Why, did you want a re-do of our race from a few years ago?” Kara asked, a playfully taunting look in her eye.

“Yeah, because you cheated last time!” Alex replied, pointing an accusing finger at Kara. “I did not! Just because you fell on your butt doesn’t mean I cheated,” Kara laughed at her sister. “I fell on my butt, because you pushed me!”

“Girls, don’t fight,” Eliza said, although she laughed along with them, smiling wide. She seemed happy to have her two daughters back in her home, feeling like a family again. “If we want to go to the ice rink, we should start getting ready now,” Alex said, chugging the last few sips of her coffee.

“Alright, I’ll go let Lena know, and get dressed then,” Kara took an extra minute, but she also drank the last of her coffee, setting the mug in the dishwasher before striding back to the hallway of bedrooms. As she passed the bathroom Lena was in- noticing that she seemed to be drying off from her shower, the water no longer running –calling through the door, “Lena, we’re planning on going to the ice rink if you’d like to join us?”

There was a pause before Lena called back, “Yeah, that sounds fun. I’ll be out in just a minute.” Kara beamed, joy filling her chest as she nodded to herself, walking into the bedroom. She grabbed a comfortable outfit that she could wear to the rink, quickly starting to change.

She managed to get into her jeans quickly, and was halfway through pulling a long sleeve t-shirt over her head when suddenly the door opened. Kara had just pulled the shirt over her bra, freezing when she saw Lena equally frozen in the doorway.

Lena’s eyes were wide, locked onto Kara’s exposed stomach. At first she was just looking at her clearly defined abs and hip bones, but when Kara saw Lena’s eyes shift to her right side, she knew Lena was looking at the deep yellow bruise that was splattered across her skin.

Still frozen in confused shock, Kara didn’t think to drop her shirt as Lena took a few step closer, her eyes still on the bruise with an unreadable expression on her face. “U-Uh,” Kara mumbled, watching Lena’s hand slowly stretch out.

Her fingertips brushed the bruise sending an eruption tingles throughout Kara’s skin. Goosebumps rose across her arms and the back of her neck as Kara watched Lena slowly slide her fingertips along the injury. Slowly she moved her hand, so that now her palm gently pressed against Kara’s stomach.

It felt as if Kara was being electrified everywhere Lena touched, taking the breath out of her lungs. Lena’s eyebrows furrowed, and Kara realized that unreadable expression was sadness- sorrow even –at seeing someone she cared about injured.

“Does it hurt?” Lena whispered, her hand sliding up towards her ribcage. Kara fought not to let her eyes flutter closed, instead clenching her jaw at the near pleasure of the sensation. “W-What?” Kara stumbled, unable to hear Lena properly. It felt like there was cotton in her ears with how loud her heart was pumping.

Lena’s eyes broke away from the bruise to look Kara in the eyes. “Does it hurt?” Lena repeated herself, head tilting to the side slightly. “No… Not really,” Kara found herself whispering. Her eyes shifted away from Lena’s, down her nose, and settled at her lips.

Lena wasn’t wearing any make-up, having washed it away in the shower, so her lips were no longer their typical bright crimson. Instead, they were a pale pink. Just a slightly darker color than the skin around them. 

Kara’s eyes traced along her upper lip, staring at the adorably pronounced cupid’s bow, down to the slight tilt of the corner of her mouth. Her eyes followed the curve of her bottom lip, thicker than the top and with a slight pout.

Kara wanted to… Kiss her. She wanted to lean forward and see if Lena’s lips were as soft as they looked. To wipe away that small frown that showed all the worry and concern in the world. She wanted her hands to explore her sides more, to feel around her body so that Kara could feel that electric tingle everywhere.

“Kara, do you know where my scarf- Oh my god! Kara, your side!” Eliza’s voice shattered Kara’s thoughts, bringing both her and Lena back to reality. Lena’s hand jerked away from Kara’s side as if she was suddenly burning hot, quickly taking a step back and to the side. Kara dropped her shirt, feeling it flump down against her hips.

“What happened?! Why are you so banged up?” Eliza, not realizing the moment she had just stepped into, swooped forward. She pulled the hem of Kara’s shirt back up and pressed a rough hand to her side. 

Dull pain erupted through the bruise, Kara instinctively arching away from the touch and taking multiple stumbling steps away from her mother’s hand. “Ow! Mom, I’m fine. It’s worse than it looks,” Kara said, swatting her mother’s hand away gently.

Eliza wasn’t satisfied with that answer, frowning and narrowing her eyes. “What happened? How did you get so hurt?” She didn’t reach forward towards the injury again, keeping her arms crossed. “It was a work thing. We got into a car accident, that’s all. I said it’s not that bad, you don’t have to worry.”

Kara glanced over to Lena, who was frowning as she watched the interaction, her face mirroring Eliza’s disbelief and worry, although a little more muted. “I promise, I’m fine,” Kara said, directed to both her mother and Lena.

Eliza looked like she was about to keep going, but after a long look at her daughter she finally dropped the topic. “Okay, well… Have you seen my scarf?” Kara felt her blood pressure go down, relaxing as her mother did. “I think I saw it hanging up by the door,” Kara answered simply, hoping her mother would go away.

With a nod, and a glance to Lena, Eliza turned and walked out of the bedroom. Kara tried to think of an excuse as to why she had cried out in pain when her mother touched her. She didn’t lie to Lena when she said it didn’t hurt, but with how she reacted to her mom it looked like she wasn’t telling the truth.

“We can just drop it,” Lena said from across the room, although there was a cold tinge to her tone that made Kara internally flinch. “Okay… You look nice,” Kara offered, just barely gesturing to Lena’s outfit.

She wore tight, black, high wasted jeans and a white and grey pinstriped button up. Her wet hair was pulled into a half up, two strands of hair kept out of the tie to hang down along the sides of Lena’s face. She looked incredibly formal against Kara’s worn out jeans and fading long sleeve t-shirt.

Lena glanced down at her outfit and scoffed. “Thank you… It’s just a mix-and-match of my other outfits that I’ve already worn on this trip.” Kara felt some warmth coming back into the room, smiling as she moved forward. “Well it looks amazing. Did you need a coat? It’ll be cold until we actually start moving around the ice.”

Lena denied the coat, mentioning she’d just wear her long overcoat from the day before. Kara agreed with a nod, moving to start putting her socks and shoes on, hearing her sister calling for them. Once they were both ready, they made their way into the front mudroom, where Eliza and Alex waited for them.

Eliza drove, all of the girls piling into her large SUV style car. Kara and Lena sat in the back, Kara opening the door for Lena out of habit. Alex talked casually about a weird dream she had to the group as they pulled out of the driveway, but Kara wasn’t listening.

Her mind drifted to the moment she had with Lena in the bedroom. She had told herself she wanted to kiss Lena? Seriously?! What kind of thought was that? It was completely out of the blue, and totally inappropriate. Kissing her friend- and her boss –wasn’t something she should be thinking about.

Why had she thought about kissing her in the first place? Was it because they were just having a soft moment? There could be no other explanation that Kara could think about… What would it feel like to kiss Lena?... No! No this wasn’t allowed.

She needed to stop those intrusive, wandering thoughts before they grew into something more. Something that could completely ruin her relationship with Lena. They were friends. They were employer and employee. Kara couldn’t be daydreaming about kissing her own boss.

It was too dangerous. If she let her mind wander like that again, then she’d just get hurt every time she remembered the reality of the situation; Lena could never be with someone like Kara. Not with her legacy. Not with her monster of a mother. Not now, not ever.

Kara bit her cheek, feeling like a tornado of emotions was swirling angrily through her chest. She didn’t want to admit that the most noticeable emotion was sadness. She couldn’t admit to herself that she was sad about the fact that- because of their employment situation –she couldn’t be with Lena… Be with Lena… In a friendly way!

She was sad that she couldn’t be closer friends with Lena. That was all. This path ended in friendship, nothing more. As soon as they got back to National City this closeness would have to be hidden. There was no way they could act like such good friends once prying eyes were around them. Kara would just end up hurting herself more if she thought- hoped for -any different.

When Kara noticed that they were pulling into the ice rink, she sat up taller. She had been lost in thought the entire ride, glancing awkwardly around the car. No one seemed to notice her silence, except for Lena who gave her a quizzical glance.

The four piled out of the car, Alex leading the group into the large building. Kara glanced around the parking lot, noticing that there weren’t many cars around them. The season for skating with your family ended on Christmas Eve, so everyone was now at home with their new presents.

They all ordered their rental skates, Alex and Kara asking for hockey skates specifically. Eliza and Lena asked for more formal skates, being handed what was essentially black heeled boots on a blade. Kara, trying to stay out of her own confusing thoughts, started to taunt Alex on how she was going to beat her just as badly as she beat her last time.

Alex retorted back with basically the same statement, continuing to accuse Kara of cheating last time. Right before they got on the ice, everyone making sure their skates were on properly, Kara turned to Lena. “Do you need a skating lesson? We can postpone our race for a little bit if you need help.”

The smirk on Lena’s face sent a shiver down Kara’s spine- which she ignored –saying, “I know how to skate… I actually did it professionally up until a few years ago.” Kara gasped, eyes going wide. “Oh, can you show us a few moves?! That’s so cool! Do you remember any of your dances?”

Lena scoffed at Kara’s excitement, grinning wide. “I do remember all of my dances- or at least most of them –but weren’t you two going to race?” Kara had to admit, she wanted to see Lena dance really badly. With how she was built, it didn’t surprise Kara that she was once an ice skater, but it was still a very exciting fact to learn about.

“How about we do our race, and then when we’re done you can show us a dance set you did?” Kara offered, excitement buzzing throughout her. Lena studied Kara’s beaming smile for a moment. “Let’s do this; If you win, I’ll show you my favorite dance routine.” Alex scoffed, mumbling about how, “Of course she’s on Kara’s side,” but Kara ignored it.

The challenge sent adrenaline pumping through her veins. If she had the reward of seeing Lena dance, then that gave her all the more reason to win. “Deal,” Kara replied quickly, holding a hand out to Lena. They shook on it, Lena flashing her a playful smile as they dropped their hands away.

“Come on, Alex. I need to beat your butt now,” Kara said, already starting to walk towards the ice rink. It was pretty empty, the only people in the building either workers or some teenagers who were more interested in the small arcade section of the rink.

Kara placed a blade onto the ice and pushed off, gliding around for a moment. She heard Lena talking to Eliza over the low music playing over the speakers. “Have they known how to skate their entire lives?” Lena asked, moving to lean forward against one of the walls next to Eliza. 

“They played hockey together from Elementary school into high school. It’s why they’re so competitive with each other,” Eliza replied back with a chuckle.

Kara’s attention was drawn away from the two when she saw Alex get into the ice as well. She had shed off her jacket, unlike Kara. “Come on; red line! You know the drill,” Alex demanded, a look of pure excitement on her face. Kara skated over to her sister, stopping with her right blade perpendicular to the front of the thick red line on the ice.

“Mom, are you going to count?” Kara asked, glancing back to Eliza and Lena, who stood right where the red line touched the boards. Eliza nodded with a grin, “Yeah, sure. First to reach four laps, right?” Both Danvers sisters agreed in unison, shifting down so they were ready to take off as soon as their mother counted to three.

Eliza took a second before she counted down.

“One.

Two.

Three!”

Alex was first off the line, her powerful legs launching her forward. Kara’s left blade skipped over the ice for just a split second, causing her to lose that advantage. She cussed under her breath before bursting forward.

Alex was a yard in front of Kara, who focused on her sisters back with burning accuracy. They barreled through the first straight away, and around the first curve. One advantage that Kara had against Alex was that she could take curves much better, turning sharply and crossing one foot in front of the other.

With that advantage, Kara used all her energy to start shoving off the ice, gaining speed in the second straight away. She got in front of Alex, who she could hear grunting multiple vulgar words in her direction, talking a ton of trash.

Kara ignored it, knowing that if she got cocky she’d lose her speed. Again as they reached the second curve, Kara took it sharper, using her momentum so she didn’t have to skate, giving her legs a momentary break. It meant losing a little bit of her speed, but she gained it back when she was able to start pushing heavily to go faster on the straight away.

They crossed the red line, Alex milliseconds after Kara. “One!” Eliza called out. Kara continued to push off the ice with each foot, but Alex had always been better at short, strong strokes compared to Kara’s long, wide foot work.

Alex started to gain on Kara, eventually surpassing her as they swept around the first curve for the second time. Kara tried to gain it back in the straight away, but her blade fumbled as it got caught in one of her previous grooves. She almost fell, having to catch herself before she wiped out.

With those few seconds of stumbling, Alex was able to gain considerable distance, taking the second curve long before Kara. “Two!” Eliza called out for Alex, and called out again three seconds after for Kara. She clenched her jaw, eyes still fixated onto Alex’s back. She had to push herself harder, but her legs were already starting to burn.

“Come on, Kara!” Lena’s voice echoed loudly. “You can do it!” Kara felt her energy spike, adrenaline pumping through her veins. With the encouragement from Lena, Kara was able to go faster, whipping around the first curve for the third time, and pass Alex in the straight away.

Lena called out more encouragement, while Eliza called out to Alex. Kara was determined to win, not only to get her reward from Lena, but also to make sure her inspiration didn’t go to waste.

“Three!” Eliza called out to Kara, who was happy to hear that Alex was at least five seconds behind her. This was it, this was the last round. Kara couldn’t stop now. She _wouldn’t_ stop now.

Kara started to count her strokes, making sure to breath with each push of her legs. She moved them faster, mastering the short, powerful strokes that Alex was so adept at doing. She swirled around the first curve for the fourth and last time.

She took the chance to glance next to her, seeing that Alex only just reached the curve, while she launched out of it and down the last straight away. Alex tried to gain speed to catch up to Kara, but her younger sister had too much to lose.

Alex didn’t stand a chance as Kara curved around the last part of the course, gliding out of the semi-circle and through the red line. “Four! Kara wins!” Eliza called out, the sentence echoing in Kara’s ears. She was huffing and puffing, her legs quivering and her sore hip throbbing.

But it was all worth it. Kara raised her arms above her head, chest heaving as she whooped and hollered. Alex groaned, knowing she’d never hear the end of this crippling defeat. Kara did a last, slow loop around the rink, listening to Lena and Eliza cheer for her.

Kara hopped off the ice as she passed the door, joy filling her heart as she saw Lena practically running to meet her. They collided into a tight hug, Kara picking Lena up and spinning her twice before setting her back down on her skates.

“You looked amazing out there,” Lena giggled into Kara’s shoulder, looking as if her breath was also taken away. Kara, unable to properly talk past her aching lungs, just smiled and nodded her thanks vigorously.

They walked back over to Eliza and Alex, who was sitting down with her arms crossed. She looked to Kara with a sour look, but in her eyes Kara could see that her sister was amused. She seemed to have had her fun, breathing almost as heavily as her sister.

Kara had to sit down, landing heavily at the picnic table next to her sister. She leaned forward, feeling the stitch in her side starting to grow painfully. “Here, let me get you two some water,” Eliza chuckled, wobbling on her skates over to the small concession stand.

“So, Kara won… Do you know which dance you’re going to do?” Alex asked Lena, leaning back with a grin. She seemed also be interested in watching Lena skate. “I do… Although I’m going to need to figure out some way to play the music that goes with it.”

Alex pointed out the DJ booth, where a man sat waiting for any special request. Considering there was no one on the ice, Lena figured there was no harm in asking him to play her the song when she was ready. Kara watched the DJ nod after Lena told him the song, looking it up and turning the screen to see if it was the right one. Lena smiled wide and nodded, thanking the man before coming back.

“I’ll need to stretch, so that should give you some time to get your breath back,” Lena told the Danvers sisters. “Do you need help?” Kara offered immediately through her rough breathing, causing Lena to smirk. “I’ll be okay, thank you. Just drink your water. I’ll let you know when I’m ready,” Lena said before moving to an open area of the building a couple of feet away.

Eliza returned with water, grinning at her kids. She sat down between the two sisters, resting her skates out in front of her. She sighed happily, looking up at the tall Plexiglas that lined the rink. “You know,” Eliza suddenly spoke as her daughters drank their water, “I haven’t had this much fun with you guys since Kara brought Nova home.”

Suddenly Kara started to choke on her water. Her lungs burned as she spat a large mouthful of the liquid out of her mouth and nose. Eliza and Alex jumped, Eliza worriedly questioning if her daughter was okay. Kara couldn’t hear her, though, her mind ripped back to a time in her life that she didn’t want to think about. Ever.

Nova… Nova Strickland. Kara’s ex-girlfriend. The real reason that Kara had run away from America and lived in Europe for so long. They had been friends ever since middle school, and started to date right after Kara got out of the military when she was 25. 

She was her first everything; first date, first actual kiss, first love… First time sleeping with someone. She was also her first real heart break. They were only dating for a year, Kara bringing her to a Christmas gathering just like this one. Shortly after that, Kara found out that Nova had cheated on her throughout their entire relationship.

The mention of her ex-girlfriend’s name sent Kara spiraling into a pit of darkness. All the emotions she had forgotten about when she was dealing with that heart break swelled up into her chest, then dropped low into her stomach. Kara felt sick, like she wanted to throw up the pain and misery.

Suddenly Lena’s voice could be heard through the darkness. Kara could see light, the voice coming through it. Kara followed it until she was blinking away the light, the ice rink around her coming back into view. 

“Kara, are you okay?!” Lena’s face was in Kara’s line of sight. The jerk of memories had been incredibly jarring, Kara taking a moment to figure out what was going on. “Y-Yeah… I’m fine,” Kara replied automatically. Her thoughts felt like they were miles away, struggling to return even as she looked at Lena’s concerned face.

“I just inhaled the water is all. It scared me,” Kara lied, sitting up fully now. Lena looked confused, glancing between the water bottle that had been crushed and Kara’s fist and her face. “Are you sure?” Lena asked, not buying into the lie. Alex and Eliza just watched with worry, staying quiet.

“I promise, I’m okay… Were you going to dance?” Kara suddenly stood, setting her crushed bottle on the table. “Uh… Yeah, I’m ready.” Lena also stood, giving Kara a warry look. She didn’t seem to want to push the subject, allowing Kara to stay silent.

Lena turned and walked towards the opening of the rink, Kara following her. She was starting to get her mind back on track, but the memory of Nova left a disgusting taste in her mouth. “Break a leg,” Kara said softly as Lena stood just outside of the ice rink.

Lena looked to her and smiled warmly. “I’ll be thinking of you,” She replied just as softly. Before Kara could even process her kind words, Lena was gone. She stepped onto the ice as if it was nothing, pushing off with her foot to glide across the smooth surface. Kara watched as Lena physically started to come alive.

She stood tall, her chin high and her shoulders back. Lena had taken off her jacket, wearing only her high jeans and flowing shirt. She did a lap around the rink, feeling the ice and testing the rented skates before gliding to the center of the rink. She stopped sharply using the sides of her blades.

Lena got into position, relaxing her arms completely. Her legs stood slightly apart, resting on the edge of one skate while the other’s toe pointed down into the ice. Lena stared down at a random spot on the ice, visibly taking multiple breaths.

Kara watched with mesmerized eyes, leaning forward onto the boards of the ice as she watched Lena raise her arms above her head, bringing them down with her hands waving in the shape of her body. It was a sensual move that caught Kara’s attention.

As soon as her arms whipped around her in a circle, and suddenly her stance switched to allow her to start gliding backwards, the music started. A lively classical song with an overbearing string quartet. 

Lena skated backwards a few steps before suddenly setting her left foot haughtily in front of her, the left turned perpendicular.

Her arms swung out, in almost an “look at me now” gesture, a wide smile breaking onto her originally serious face. She moved forward, skating a few feet as the music started to get into a strong beat.

Kara watched with mesmerized eyes as Lena brought her left leg back, bending it at the knee before kicking out. The momentum picked her right blade up ever so slightly, raising her in the air for just a split second.

The way she moved, the smile on her face, her arms out stretched, high to the side… It was hot. It was seductive. It was _sexy_. Kara stared, that electric tingle she felt when Lena touched her returning. It started at the base of her spine and rolled upwards, spreading through her shoulders and neck before completely enveloping her.

Lena’s skates landed, but she did a half spin, her back to Kara for only a split second as she kicked her leg out halfway, drawing it back in to start skating forward. Her torso was turned to the side, arms turning with her shoulders, using the momentum to spin her entire body around quickly. She did it a second time, facing Kara again.

Lena’s right knee bent sideways with her skate, which steered her as her left leg stuck out, the side of her blade resting against the ice. Her right arm curled over her head while the left reached out in front of her.

In one motion they started to twist, the rest of Lena’s body following along. She twisted twice so quickly that Kara could hardly count the turns before she was moving sideways again, arms rising and swaying along with the loud violin that played.

Both arms reached up, curling above her head before she threw them down in back of her. Lena turned her direction, back facing Eliza and Alex while her side faced Kara. She kicked off the ice a few times, arms reaching in back of her.

She did a series of small kicks down towards the ground. She kicked with her right foot, bending the leg as she did a 180 before kicking again. Her arms danced wildly, and Kara didn’t know what she wanted to look at more; her foot work or her hands.

Lena repeated the same motion a small handful of times until she was facing Kara again. Suddenly she was skating backwards, her feet dancing around each other smoothly. Lena’s arms stuck out to the side, bending at the elbow and swirling around ever so slightly so that she could keep her balance.

She spun twice, repeating the backwards move, but when she turned to face Kara again she did a sort of pointed-toe move that stopped her from sliding too far in the wrong direction. Then she skated as if she was running a few steps before spinning again. Her arms hugged her in this spin, making it seem faster than the others.

She twisted and was skating backwards for the countless time, looking over her shoulder. She had a look of excitement that was almost palpable in the air. It looked like she was getting ready for something, gaining the slightest amount of speed.

She faced forward, kicked her leg out for half a second, then spun so she was still skating in the same direction, but was facing backwards. It looked like she was running again, her feet smoothly gliding across the ice.

Lena did a wide-stance 360, arms dancing wildly out and then continued to skate backwards. She was still visibly preparing for something, Alex and Eliza already cheering her on. Kara was so infatuated with how her body moved- how good she looked spinning and moving her arms around in such a synchronized way –that she couldn’t find any words to call out to Lena.

Another 360 spin, turning multiple times with a leg kicked out. Instead of pulling out of the spin and gliding into a different direction, she stepped right back into another spin, this time drawing her leg so it was bent at the knee.

This time she stepped out of the spin, moving backwards before sharply turning her direction, skating forwards again as she kicked her leg back. She did another tight turn, arms reaching above her and twisting around at the wrist. Her feet glided one after the other, giving a beautiful view of her toned and curvy body.

Kara’s mouth was practically watering.

Lena did a half turn, both feet pointing the opposite direction in a line. Her arms were quickly brought down, head tilting back so she could feel the sides of her face and neck before twisting and skating sideways.

Kara wanted to kiss the skin she just touched so badly.

Another spin with her arms high in the air before she cut to a split second stop, almost aggressively skating away in the opposite direction she had originally was gliding in. Lena twisted and turned, lowering her torso ever so slightly.

And then it finally happened; the move she’d been gearing up for.

It started off for just a heartbeat as a normal spin with both feet on the ground, but this time it was much wider. Her leg stuck out straight back, her arms straight to the side as the wide circle turned into a tight spin in place. She brought her arms to the back of her, head tilted ever so slightly as she clasped her hands against the back of her hips.

Kara felt a rush of heat spread through her entire body, fingertips tingling. It was possibly the most attractive things she’d ever seen.

Lena spun like for about 5 seconds, dropping her leg suddenly and turning her arms, throwing them to use the momentum to continue the motion. She straightened, holding her leg straight out in front of her and moving her arms above her head, still spinning in place.

She exited the spin backwards, continuing with the same half turns and quickly foot work. Her arms raised and fell, spinning and weaving around. Then all of a sudden she did her first actual jump.

With a visibly intake of breath Lena threw her right leg out and to the left, jumping with the other leg. Her arms were outstretched to the sides, using them to balance herself. Lena landed heavily after about 2 or 3- Kara couldn’t tell –full rotations in the air.

Her knees bent at the impact, Lena’s entire body bending low as her arms strategically moved so she could catch herself just in case. Continuing to move down low, Lena never set down her right leg. The jump had turned into a sort of squatted spin, staying in place, balancing on one leg.

Her balance was captivating- almost bewitching. Kara swallowed hard watching her pants stretch with her movements.

Lena held the low spin for multiple rotations again, her raised foot never touching the ground, arms outstretched with her hands clasped in front. Suddenly Lena rose, and spun upright, arms being brought in before flashing out with a flare.

Once again she was back to skating backwards, then forwards, then seductively turning. She did a tiny hop as she glided backwards, that joy-filled smile still on her face. She did a wide arch, both feet facing outwards as she leaned terrifyingly far back. Her arms were outstretched to the side, palms up.

Then without warning she did another jump. Lena bent and the knees and then leaped into the air. Both arms were brought tightly to her chest, turning another 2 or 3 times before landing with a _CRACK_ against the ice.

Kara bit her lip, leaning so heavily against the wall that it was supporting all of her weight. Her legs felt like jelly, watching Lena.

When Lena landed she landed on one foot again, aggressively sliding backwards with both arms out like wings. She moved into a much the much simpler moves again, avoiding spins and turns to just kick her left foot out like she was tap dancing again, arms moving like she was running.

Another jump, her arms returning to her chest and one of her legs bending behind the other. It almost looked as if she was sitting with her legs crossed in mid-air. She landed on one foot only to turn into another jump. This time as she turned her feet stayed crossed at the ankle, only one knee bending ever so slightly.

She landed it, moving back into the interim moves, skating backwards again. Lena’s chest was heaving, and her hair was flowing wildly around her shoulders. She noticeably swallowed hard, taking these small movements as a sort of break.

She kicked her leg so high in the air that her knee was less than a foot from touching her shoulder. The momentum spun her, which she used to move into a tiny jump with a single rotation. Lena landed, arching sharply to skate sideways then backwards.

Lena threw her arms in back of her, bending at her knees with vigor for a split second. She held her arms in back of her, continuing to move backwards before turning her body again, arms swinging around to help with her balance.

Kara had no idea how much longer Lena was going to dance, but she could stand there and watch her for the rest of her life. It was intoxicating; seeing the joy and pride on her face as she landed each jump with ease. Kara couldn’t deny the heat that was settling low in her hips, making her bite her lip even more.

Lena’s movements got slow and languid, but her speed picked up with each lazy push of her skates. Again, she was visibly relaxing, seemingly taking a stylized break. Then she moved to kneel down on one knee, her left leg stretching far in back of her as she glided in a straight line.

Lena’s back arched backwards, and Kara openly gasped, watching her spine curve and her chest stick outwards. With her head tilted backwards her hand grazed across her front, and Kara felt jealous that she couldn’t be that hand touching Lena like that.

She stood and skated straight into a spin, the spin turning into a jump. This one was low in the air, only lasting a few seconds. Lena landed it backwards, arms thrown out to the side as she moved along with the momentum.

Lena turned to face forward, dancing more with her arms again rather than her feet. She spun and twisted, repeating the same moves as before. Kara waited with her breath caught in her lungs for the next jump, fingers grasping the half wall she leaned against with an iron grip.

There it was again. The in-place spin where Lena’s leg was held backwards, her torso bent forward, in line with it. Lena’s arms were held against her back, head tilted up so she could see around her. Her smile was blinding as she spun easily, radiating like the sun.

Instead of stepping out of the spin, Lena then brought her outstretched leg forward, bending forward to hug her thigh. The leg that held her up bent at the knee ever so slightly, but she didn’t dip straight down into a squat like Kara expected.

She let her leg go, straightened up, and then _that’s_ when she squatted down, one leg outstretched and not touching the ground just like the first time she did that move. The entire time she was spinning in place, like a toy top that refused to slow.

She squatted for only a few seconds before straightening again. A look of concentration flooded Lena’s face as she brought her legs together, crossing them at the ankle and drawing her arms into her chest. The movement made her spin so fast Kara was afraid she was going to drill right through the ice.

But Lena didn’t bore a hole through the frozen water. Instead she easily stepped out of the spin and started to glide backwards. The music was slowing, and she seemed to be slowing as well. Now Lena looked really exhausted, her cheeks and nose vibrant red.

She spread her legs wide as she moved backwards, throwing her arms backwards on her right side before shoving herself forward, arms swinging wide in an upward direction. She arched her back for a split second before spinning in a circle with her feet placed wide.

And then it was suddenly over. She stopped with a twist of her feet. One blade faced sideways while she pointed her other blade down just like when she started. Her arms hugged herself tightly, eyes looking straight at Kara before she outstretched one arm to point directly at her.

Kara felt her heart stop, holding eye contact. Her jaw was ajar, and she was breathing almost as heavily as Lena was. The music cut out when Lena had stopped dancing, now silence in the ice rink. Lena stood there for what felt like a long time, but in reality was probably only 5 seconds.

Kara moved to stand up straighter, having slouched over the wall slightly. When she shifted her legs she could feel an undoubtable wetness between them. Kara was turned on… _Heavily_. Her mouth felt bone dry as she closed it with a loud snap, her tongue feeling like sand paper.

Lena stood straight, skating away from the center of the ice- where she expertly ended up –going over to where Kara stood. Eliza and Alex hurried over, cheering Lena on and spewing how amazing that looked. Lena smiled to the two elder Danvers, but her eyes returned to Kara.

“How was that?” She asked through heavy breathing, skates bumping against the stopper board on the edge of the exit. Kara swallowed thickly, knowing that her face was just as red as Lena’s. “You looked like a goddess,” Kara replied breathily. 

She was trying to keep the arousal out of her voice, but as she offered a hand down to Lena, the contact sent another spike of what almost felt like pleasure straight to her hips. She tried not to let go of Lena’s hand too quickly once she was safely on the rubber mats of the family area.

Everyone went back to the picnic table, Lena sitting down heavily. She started to fix her hair, which was wind swept and uncharacteristically messy. Kara silently stood, listening to Eliza and Alex talk over each other, drowning Lena in compliments.

Eventually things settled down, although Kara was still revisiting some of her favorite moves that Lena did in her head. “Mom, you haven’t gotten a chance to skate. Let’s all just go have some fun,” Alex suggested. “Yeah, sure… Although I don’t think I’m going to be able do anything fancy like race you kids, or do an entire dance routine,” Eliza chuckled.

Eliza and Alex stepped back onto the ice first, Kara hanging back for a moment with Lena. “Did you really like it? The dance, I mean,” Lena asked softly, her eyes searching for approval. “I loved it, Lena. I couldn’t take my eyes off of you,” Kara replied with a wide smile. “Honestly I’m jealous you can move so well on the ice. I feel like a bulldozer compared to you.”

Lena’s laughter had an extra musical tone to it that made Kara’s heart flutter, pausing to listen to it with an aroused smirk. Damn she really needed to calm down… There was a bathroom, maybe she could- No! No, that was a terrible idea! The last thing Kara needed was to get off to the thought of her boss ice skating in a dirty public restroom.

“I could teach you a few moves if you’d like… See if you’re professional material,” Lena flirted. No, not flirted. She was joking, that was all. Kara grinned and nodded. “Yeah, sure. Just a warning, though, I’m a very terrible student.” Lena smirked and giggled. “I’m sure I’ll get you to listen to me somehow.” Kara almost tripped as she stepped onto the ice.

For the rest of the morning, and well into the afternoon the Danvers and Lena played around on the ice. Kara struggled to keep her mind away from off limit thoughts at first, but as she started to get more into skating and not staring at Lena as she easily balanced on one foot while sticking the other one backwards, things started to get a lot more fun.

Alex and Kara started to see who could out skate the other, Lena teaching them a few moves. Eliza just enjoyed skating around in circles, laughing at her daughters as they competed together. It was a joy fill time, laughter abundant throughout the group.

Eventually everyone got too tired to work anymore, Kara’s legs physically burning. It was late afternoon as they got off the ice, returning their rented skates and heading back into Eliza’s car. They chatted happily together, even Lena starting to come out of her shell.

“Dibs on the first shower,” Alex called as soon as the front tires of Eliza’s car hit the driveway. “Hey, no! What if Lena wants the first shower?!” Kara complained, softly smacking her sisters arm. “It’s okay, I don’t need the first shower. I’ll just call dibs on the second one.” Lena mischievously smiled, Alex and Eliza laughing.

Kara gasped in betrayal, pressing a hand to her chest. “Wow, now I’ve got my own friend turning on me,” She whimpered jokingly. Lena only snorted, grinning and rolling her eyes. Everyone piled out of the car, Alex running to claim her spot as first to shower. Eliza didn’t even bother, knowing she had her own bathroom to herself.

While they waited for Alex to take her shower and come out of the bathroom, Kara flopped onto her bed. She groaned, her body aching from so much exercise in one day. “Every single muscle in my legs are burning.”

Lena’s weight shifted the bed slightly as she moved to lay down next to Kara. “Yeah, a few of those jumps really wreaked havoc on my knees.” Kara shifted her face out of the pillow so she was looking to Lena, who was leaning against the head board.

“You really did look beautiful out there. I meant it when I said you look like a goddess.” Kara offered a sweet smile, which Lena mirrored with blushing cheeks. “Thank you. That means a lot coming from you… I forgot how much I missed skating, though. It’s such a thrill.”

Kara shifted onto her side, propping her head up with a bent arm. “What made you stop?” She asked, her free hand playing with a stray strand of string on the duvet cover. Lena relaxed more into the mountain of pillows, lazily turning her head to look at Kara.

“A couple of things… Work, the Immortals… My mother.” Lena’s expression got sad for a moment, but when her eyes met Kara’s she seemed to lighten up a bit. “Maybe once you get some free time you can start again. I’d love to see you dance like that some more.”

Kara’s mind thought back on how she looked. The joy, the exhilaration, the pure delight in her smile. She moved like she was born for something like ice skating. Her hips swayed in perfect sink with her arms and legs. Her feet communicated on a whole different level.

The curves of her body, and how good they looked with each spin, twirl, and jump. The way she so flexibly moved. Her legs were probably the most seductive part of the entire thing. The way they bent and flexed with each step- each kick and jump. It was the most provocative thing Kara had ever seen without it being openly sexual.

Suddenly Kara’s train of thought was broken when she felt fingers slowly dragging through her hair. Kara’s eyes focused to see that Lena had mimicked her posture; laying down on her side and propping her hand up. She had a slightly concerned look on her face, an arm reaching forward so that she could gently run her fingers through Kara’s windswept hair.

She couldn’t help but let her eyes flutter shut, the feeling sending tingles across her scalp and down her spine. If Kara hadn’t already been so turned on just thinking about Lena skating, this would have gotten her going within seconds.

“Are you okay?” Lena whispered softly, pulling her fingers through a long lock of hair before returning to Kara’s roots. “You’ve been zoning out a lot today… Is something wrong?” Kara couldn’t find the words to answer the question.

All she could do was hum and slowly rest her head against the bed. “I’m okay,” Kara replied eventually, her tone sleepy and distant. She couldn’t see Lena’s face, but she could hear the frown in her voice when she spoke. “You’ve said that all day, but I don’t think you really mean it…”

Kara’s eyes opened, looking up to Lena. She was in fact frowning, a worried yet disgruntled look on her face. Kara quirked an eyebrow, unable to think of what she could have meant by that. The fingers in her hair were too distracting.

“I asked you about your side hurting, and you said it didn’t when I was touching it… Yet you flinched when your mom touched the bruise,” Lena continued to speak in a low tone that was basically a whisper. Her voice was full of concern, and the slightest touch of hurt reverberated through her words. Like she was hurt that Kara potentially lied to her.

“Because it didn’t hurt when you touched me… It felt good, actually. My mom was just really rough, and so I flinched away without thinking,” Kara responded, hoping her voice sounded reassuring. Lena stared at her for a few seconds before her eyes flickered down to where Kara’s shirt rode up ever so slightly, showing the ugly yellow bruise on her waist.

Her fingers pulled out of Kara’s hair, and moved down to the exposed skin. Her touch was feather light, starting with the very tips of her fingers. When Kara didn’t flinch, watching her hand with dark blue eyes, she moved to press her finger pads against the bruise.

Again, Kara didn’t move away, her breathing starting to pick up. Slowly Lena slid her fingers against Kara’s discolored skin until her palm was pressed against her flexing stomach. Her touch had a little more pressure, but that electric tingle- that Kara quickly realized was arousal –spread across the surface of her skin.

When Lena’s hand glided up an inch upwards, her fingers flexing slightly, Kara had to bite her lip to keep herself from moaning. “This feels good?” Lena’s soft whisper came from in front of Kara. She looked up, her eyes locking with Lena’s green ones.

“It does, yeah…” Kara whispered back. She didn’t stop Lena’s hand as she felt it starting to move further up. Her thumb gently rubbed against her, sending a pool of heat to settle low in Kara’s hips. She started to move backwards, wanting to lay on her back.

Lena shifted with her, following Kara as she moved to lay down properly. Lena still rested all her weight on her right side, but she moved to press almost flush against the side of Kara’s body. Sweat started to prickle along Kara’s spine and hairline, her body temperature sky rocketing.

Kara tried to keep her breathing under control, not wanting to show how much the physical contact was effecting her. She didn’t realize she was reaching up to gently place a hand on Lena’s cheek until her fingertips were already touching Lena’s burning skin. She slightly leaned into the touch, her lips parting ever so slightly.

Lena’s hand started to move away from the bruised skin, towards Kara’s sternum. Kara silently wondered if Lena could feel her heart beating in her chest. “Lena,” Kara’s voice was so soft she couldn’t even classify it as a whisper. Her touch felt so good, and Kara knew that she was already addicted to it.

Kara was just about to start to sit up, hoping that Lena wouldn’t lean away, when suddenly she spoke. “Who’s Nova?... You looked really upset when your mom mentioned her name.” Kara could have sworn she heard a record scratch in her brain. She audibly grunted, “uh” as her hormone soaked brain screeched to a halt.

Kara’s hand dropped away from Lena’s cheek, a look of annoyance passing over her face that made Lena suddenly remove her hand from Kara’s shirt as well. “I don’t want to talk about her,” Kara mumbled, frowning deeply. She looked away from Lena, up to the ceiling.

“I-I’m sorry,” Lena stuttered, realizing her mistake too late. “You just zoned out really bad when your mom brought her up and I… Is she an ex?” Lena shifted so she wasn’t pressed so closely to Kara, who was simultaneously glad that she moved away, and upset over the removed contact.

“Yes… And that’s all I’m telling you. I said I don’t want to talk about it.” Kara felt that familiar bitter taste starting to spread across her tongue at the thought of Nova, her ex’s face flashing across her mind. She didn’t want to be laying down anymore, so Kara suddenly sat up.

Lena moved to also sit up, frowning deeply. “Okay, I’m sorry… I won’t bring her up again. I shouldn’t have pushed. I’m really sorry.” Kara hugged her half bent legs, frowning down at her feet. “Just drop it… Please.”

Kara could feel Lena gently touch the back of her shoulder, but the sound of Alex striding down the hallway caused her to jerk her hand away. “Hey, Lena, bathroom’s-… Is everything okay?” Alex froze in the doorway, her short wet hair combed backwards, instantly noticing the awkward tension in the room.

“We’re fine. Thank you, Alex, I’ll hop into the shower now.” Lena slid off of the bed, her green eyes locked onto Alex. At first Alex remained in the doorway, looking as if she wanted to push and ask what was going on. However, the tense stare made her uncomfortable, so she just nodded and walked away.

Lena silently grabbed her spare clothing, pausing before she moved to walk out of the room. Kara was still sitting on the bed, staring off at a general spot on the floor as she struggled to maintain her anger. “I’m really sorry, Kara,” Lena said in a soft, worried voice.

Kara looked up at Lena with an emotionless face. She knew Lena was just curious, and it wasn’t her fault. Kara would have done the same in the opposite situation. Still, Kara couldn’t help but be angry for the time being. “It’s fine. Enjoy your shower.” Was all Kara could manage to say, trying to keep the emotion out of her voice.

Lena frowned, but nodded and walked away. As soon as Kara was alone she flopped down onto her back and closed her eyes. She tried to make her mind go blank, focusing on her breathing. No Lena. No Nova. No anything. She just needed to get her heart beat to relax and then she’d be okay.

It took Lena about twenty minutes to take her shower, returning with light footsteps. Kara was still lying on her back, eyes closed. At this point she had almost fallen asleep, but when she heard Lena very softly clear her throat it made her open her eyes.

“Are you all done?” Kara asked, her anger at the Nova situation having gone down to more of an uncomfortable emotion that buzzed in the back of her brain. “Yeah, the shower’s all yours. I tried to leave some hot water so your shower wasn’t too cold.”

After a day like this Kara didn’t entirely mind a cold shower. Her mind had gotten too hot and heavy, and there was still a low urge to chase that feeling. “Thank you. I won’t be long, if you’d like to hang out with mom and Alex… Or you can always take a nap. It’s been a long day.” Lena only nodded, still obviously feeling bad about their previous interaction.

Grabbing her PJ’s again, Kara silently left the room, going to the bathroom and tightly shutting the door. Kara turned the water on to let it get hot all over again, stripping off her clothing. Kara paused in the mirror, staring at the bruise on her side.

Kara carefully reached up and touched where Lena’s hand had previously trailed. The sensation brought back the memory of earlier that day, as well as their last interaction less than an hour ago. The tingling quickly lowered between Kara’s legs, sitting there and refusing to go away. In fact, the more Kara touched her side the stronger the tingling got.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The arousal started to reawaken, reminding Kara about how turned on she got watching Lena dance. Her hips, the arch of her back, the way her hands splayed across her face and neck when she danced. Kara closed her eyes, picturing her flexible body. What would it look like lying in bed?

Kara’s hand moved along the trail that Lena had blazed earlier, except when she got to her sternum she didn’t pause. Instead her hand moved up to where Kara had wanted Lena to touch her all along. She reached up towards a bare breast, palming it gently.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This was wrong. This was so totally wrong, but at this point Kara was too far in. She didn’t want to have to think about her feelings; her true reasoning behind why she was touching herself like this. She just wanted to work through this vivification. She wanted simultaneously did and didn’t want to stop picturing Lena in such a way.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Kara swallowed hard, and started to move the hand on her chest. At first it didn’t really feel like much, but the more she moved the more sensitive the little bud under her palm started to get. She could feel the nipple starting to press up into her hand, gasping as a bolt of pleasure shot through her chest and down her spine.

Yes, this was wrong, but that didn’t stop Kara’s mind from picturing Lena in the bathroom with her.

_Lena’s hand gently massaged her chest, her fingers starting to move, circling around Kara’s nipple._

Kara’s fingers circled, her nails lightly dragging against her slowly heating skin.

_Lena’s fingers moved towards the center, her fingers brushing against the erected nub, sending another spike of pleasure through Kara._

Kara’s fingers were moving against herself, finger pads flicking against her nipple.

Fantasy and reality started to merge together. Kara could no longer tell who’s hand was touching her. Was it her own? Was it Lena’s? It didn’t really matter, the sensation all too good- too addicting –for Kara to stop.

Kara’s free hand started to drag feather light across her flexing abs. She couldn’t keep her breath steady, chest heaving as her muscles tensed.

_It was Lena’s mouth trailing down her stomach that gave Kara such swooping butterflies. Her lips were soft and gentle, moving downwards towards Kara’s hips._

_Her mouth nipped at the sensitive skin, making Kara moan._

Kara dug her finger nails gently into her skin, creating the sensation of someone biting her. She moaned again, trying hard to keep her voice from overbearing the running shower and fan.

_Lena’s hand still stretched up, fingers playing with Kara’s breast. She pinched gently, but when that didn’t elect a positive enough response, she pulled roughly._

Kara’s breath hitched, her head roughly smacking against the wall she was now leaning against when she hastily moved backwards.

_Lena’s nipping kisses moved down, almost right where Kara wanted her, but moving just to the side. She kissed down Kara’s thigh, slowly moving towards the inside of her thigh._

Kara’s hand lowered down, down, down. She moved as far as she could until her shoulder was completely extending her arm. Her fingers- or Lena’s, she couldn’t tell –pulled roughly at a nipple again, causing her back to arch.

_She teased, her mouth moving around where Kara was silently begging her to go. She knew what Kara wanted, but wasn’t going to give it to her that easily. Her fingers twisted and played with Kara’s chest, moving from one breast to the other._

Kara moaned almost too loudly. She had to bite her lip to avoid using her voice. It just felt so damn good.

_Lena played and played until finally she gave into Kara’s whispering begs._

“Please… Please Lena… I can’t take it. Please use your mouth.” Kara was panting, refusing to open her eyes as her back arched after a particularly rough tug at her nipple.

_A hot, textured tongue licked fully through Kara. It was quick, Lena reveling in the soft whimpers coming from her all too willing partner. She licked through her again, slower this time._

Kara had to take the hand from her breasts and cover her mouth as her fingers stroked through her wet folds. It felt sinfully good, her legs already on the brink of shivers.

_Lena’s tongue stroked through her once, twice, three more times until she finally started to circle Kara’s clit with a feather light touch. She grinned, looking up to Kara with those amazing green eyes._

Kara begged in a quiet voice through her covered mouth, looking down at her working hand- Lena –pleasure tingling with each circle of her fingers. It wasn’t enough, though. The touch had to be heavier, which is what Kara begged for.

_She didn’t give in at first, continuing to tease and play with Kara’s pussy. She loved hearing such a strong and stoic woman begging for her to fuck her properly. Eventually she gave in, the flat of her tongue swiping heavily over Kara’s clit._

The sensation was amazing. Pleasure swelled low in Kara’s stomach, making her moan low and long through her fingers. She couldn’t help but close her eyes again, thinking about exactly how Lena looked eating her out.

_Her tongue worked slow but thoroughly. She wanted to build Kara up, roll her through the finish line rather than shove her to a rough ending. Lena could taste the tangy flavor spreading through her mouth, eating it up like it was ice cream._

_Lena started to work faster, listening to Kara’s moans getting higher and closer together._

Kara’s fingers worked harder, swiping tight circles against her clit. Her legs were starting to shake from exhaustion, pushing heavily against the wall adjacent to the mirror.

_She pushed her tongue to go as fast as she could, eyes looking up to the look of pure pleasure that was on Kara’s face. She loved watching her eyebrows furrow, her back arch off the wall, her legs tremble in preparation for what was about to happen._

The orgasm was slow, but powerful. Kara gasped against her hand, taking in a deep inhale as pleasure throbbed between her legs. It was blinding, lasting for what felt like hours.

Slowly but surely, the pleasure started to dull. Kara kept her fingers moving until every last bit of the orgasm passed through her body, working herself down from such an addictive high. Kara dropped her hand from her mouth, panting in the humid bathroom.

As Kara looked into the mirror in front of her, she removed her hand from between her legs. The coarse pinstripe of blond hair was visibly wet, her fingers glistening in the bathroom light as she pulled her hand away.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Staring at herself brought Kara’s mind crashing back to Earth. Lena was nowhere to be seen in the bathroom. Kara was lone, staring at her hot and flushed reflection gasping for air.

Now wasn’t the time to try and process what had just happened. Because Kara knew what happened. She just got off to the thought of her boss eating her out. Kara swallowed hard, glancing awkwardly around the bathroom.

She still had to jump into the shower, which had run out of hot water long ago. Honestly the freezing stream felt good as it splashed against Kara’s back, cooling her sweating body down quickly. The water brought Kara fully out of her sexual haze, allowing herself to properly wash her body.

After washing her hair quickly, Kara jumped out of the shower and dried off in record speed. She didn’t want to be naked anymore. She didn’t want to be in this bathroom anymore.

Kara finished getting dressed and practically ran out of the bathroom after combing her still damp hair. She hurried into her room, where Lena sat reading what looked to be a book off of her phone. Her green eyes- the green eyes Kara had just been imaging staring up at her –flickered over to look at her pale face.

“Is everything okay?... You look like you just saw a ghost or something,” Lena commented, sitting up and setting her phone down. Kara swallowed thickly, moving to put her dirty clothes in the hamper side of her suit case. “I’m fine, just ran out of hot water halfway through my shower,” Kara lied quickly. She couldn’t even look at Lena.

Kara was so fucking screwed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I understand that the ice skating scene was probably super confusing- I lost track of Lena's limbs at least a dozen times while writing that scene -so if anyone wanted a visual aid, watch the youtube video "Yuri!!! On Ice - In Regards to Love : Eros Live" by the youtuber Joel Minas (Yes I used a Yuri on Ice video, it's a good anime... Don't judge me).  
> Anyways.
> 
> If I don't post before New Years, happy New Year everyone! May 2021 not suck ass as much as 2020.  
> -Aries


	8. Chapter 8: Bittersweet

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lena and Kara get into a fight that nearly destroys their relationship, only to be reconnected through a life threatening incident.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A lot of people have been asking me for a chapter in Lena's POV, but I don't think this is what they meant, lmao... I'll write her POV a few more times in the future.  
> This chapter is super angsty, but don't worry, next chapter (Which will be posted in 2021) will be much sweeter.  
> Lastly, I don't think I'll put in any more chapter-consuming violence (Maybe just a tiny conflict or two), because I know that's not really what everyone is here to read about.
> 
> Anyways, enjoy the chapter!  
> -Aries

Lena typed silently on her computer, answering the mountain of e-mails she had been ignoring for the past 3 days. Today was Lena and Kara’s first day back since Colorado. They had left yesterday afternoon, Kara giving her heart felt good-bye’s to her mother and sister. Lena hadn’t expected such a warm hug from Eliza, but she was happy when she received one.

The entire last day Kara had been off, and that off-ness had bled into all day today. It was as if she had resorted back to acting like Lena and her were complete strangers. Lena had to admit it felt just like when they first met; when Kara was keen on staying professional.

She no longer joked around with Lena, and hardly even said her name even when they were alone on the plane ride home. Lena asked her if everything was okay, but Kara wasn’t telling her anything, resorting to a simple, “Yeah, I’m fine,” every time Lena asked.

It was disheartening, and Lena felt as if she did something wrong. She wondered if Kara was still upset with her for bringing up Nora even when she asked her not to. Lena still felt awful for doing that, and hoped that maybe she could do something to mend their friendship again.

Lena silently glanced over to Kara, who had been sitting on her black leather couch for almost 5 hours straight now. There weren’t any meetings for Lena to go to for at least a week- unless it was an emergency meeting –so Kara was probably going to be bored sick the entire time.

She was quietly reading another book that Jessica have given her, so infatuated with the story that she didn’t notice Lena had stopped typing and was staring at her. It was adorable how focused she got. Lena had observed long ago that when Kara was absorbed in something like reading, her eyebrows would show all her emotion.

Currently she seemed confused about something- maybe an interaction between two characters –her eyebrow’s furrowed ever so slightly. As her bright blue eyes scanned across the page, she seemed to process whatever was going on in the story, the crease lessening and both eyebrows raising at the inner corner.

Lena didn’t realize but she was softly nibbling at her lip as she watched Kara. She quickly adverted her gaze, looking back to her computer screen. She needed to be working, not staring at her body guard. Lena continued to answer emails for another 3 hours, feeling like it was a never ending avalanche.

At one point she had to take a break and pace around her office after reading a particularly stupid message. Frustration boiled inside of her, despite her rather cool, blank expression. Kara silently watched her, not offering any sort of joke or reassurance like she usually did when she saw Lena getting angry over work.

That probably hurt more than it should have- and only made Lena more frustrated –even though Lena knew that Kara set the boundary of staying distant and professional at work. Lena hated it. She wanted to listen to Kara’s soft voice reassure her, to calm her down so that she didn’t want to break her keyboard over her monitor.

Lena had to choke back her anger and disappointment, washing it down with a tall glass of resentment towards her situation in life. She sat back down at her desk with a heavy sigh though her nose, giving her screen a look so cold it could have made it snow in the office.

Another 2 excruciating hours passed, and finally Lena had made a sizable dent in her work. She had just exited out of her open browsers and messaged Jessica that she could go home when all of a sudden her office phone rang.

Lena wanted to scream, but instead she picked up the receiver and put it to her ear. “Hello?” She spoke, trying to not sound too huffy or irritated. “I didn’t even know you were back in town until this afternoon. What happened to greeting your own mother?” Lillian’s annoying voice came through the phone.

“I was busy with work,” Lena answered as simply as she could, cussing up a storm internally. “You say that in past tense, meaning you’re free now. Come to my office, I’d like to speak with you.” It wasn’t a question; it was a demand. Lena agreed begrudgingly, hanging up the phone and standing.

“One last thing and then you can take me home,” Lena said in an apologetic tone. Kara just hummed in acknowledgment, standing up from the couch and putting her book away. She didn’t even stretch like Lena knew she liked to do after sitting for a long time. Another pang of sadness went through Lena’s heart, knowing that Kara felt like she couldn’t relax around her anymore.

Lena didn’t have time to fully acknowledge her emotions, striding out of her office and to the elevator. When they went up to her mother’s office, Lena wasn’t surprised to see she was holding a drink in her hand. That’s what she did constantly; complain and drink.

Sitting down in her usual seat across from Lillian, Lena crossed her legs and silently waited for her mother to acknowledge her. Kara stood against the back wall, her presents heavily pronounced in the back of Lena’s mind. Lillian lazily read something off of her computer for an extra 30 seconds before finally turning to her daughter.

“How was your trip?” Lillian asked with a false smile. Really? This is what she wanted to talk to her about? Lena gave a small shrug. “It was fine. We got snowed in at New York, which put my schedule behind considerably.” It wasn’t a lie, but honestly Lena had no qualms against lying to her mother anyways.

Lillian held that fake smile, her eyes visibly searching her daughter. “And Colorado?... How are Eliza and Alex Danvers?” Lillian’s eyes slid up past Lena to look at Kara. Lena could feel palpable tension radiating against her back, not having to turn around to see that Kara had visibly stiffened where she stood.

Lena fought to keep any emotion out of her face. If she showed anything around her mother, Lillian would use it against Lena. Kara had already made that mistake; Lillian’s imposter smile was quickly replaced with a malicious grin. Kara had given away what they were really doing in Colorado, and now Lena had to think fast for an excuse.

“I was curious about my body guards past, and her family life. You said she’d be mine forever, right? I don’t want a stranger protecting me for such a long time. I decided to get to know her a little.” Again, it wasn’t really a lie; it was just worded better than, “I’m chasing after this connection I feel with this woman like a dog chasing after a bone.”

Lillian’s eyes finally shifted away from Kara, who was as still noticeably tense even without Lena looking back at her. “Why? What’s the point in that?” Lillian’s smile faded into visible, naïve confusion, “You had Sean for a while, and you never bothered getting to know him… He died in the end, anyways. You’re just wasting your time.”

Lena almost let her rage slip. Her crossed foot flexed in the air, and every muscle in Lena’s abdomen tensed tightly as she physically had to stop herself from jumping out of her seat to attack Lillian. How dare she speak like that! Kara wasn’t a waste of time, not to her.

Sean had been Lena’s pervious guard, but he didn’t have nearly as much experience as Kara did. Lena still remembered the day he died; he was escorting her from a parking lot into a night club to meet James. They didn’t realize there was an opposing mafia group there, so when the bullets started flying Sean accidentally became a human shield.

“Well that’s something for me to deal with, and not you,” Lena answered in a monotone voice. The edges of her vision were starting to turn red in rage, and Lena knew she needed to get out of this god forsaken room before she lost all control.

Lillian didn’t seem to either notice or care about her daughter’s dismissive words. She just rolled her eyes and leaned back in her chair. “Well anyways… I actually called you up here for work reasons. I’ve got some bad news. It turns out the Emerald Dragons aren’t as submissive as we thought they were.”

Lena raised an eyebrow, switching her legs so both feet were now on the floor, sitting slightly forward. “What do you mean?” She wasn’t interested in squashing the rival gang, she was just interested in knowing what kind of threat they posed to Kara and herself.

“They recently attacked one of our zones. Killed quite a few Immortals. Gerard pointed out that your security should be strengthened again, so they don’t try going after you again. For now, I’m going to have your body guard escort you inside and out of your apartment, and possibly increase it so that she’ll spend evenings there as well.” Lillian spoke casually, taking a sip of her drink as she lounged in her chair.

Wait… So Kara might have to start living with Lena? For a second her heart fluttered happily, but that happiness was quickly replaced with a sinking feeling in her stomach. What would Kara have to say about this? Would she hate it? Would she get impossibly more distant? She was still upset about something over their vacation, and increasing the amount of time with Lena might just make things worse.

Of course Lena couldn’t say that to her mother. So instead she just agreed. There wasn’t any way to go against the potential order. For now, all she could do was hope that just being escorted inside and out of her apartment would work.

Lena was just about to stand, sensing the conversation was over, when all of a sudden Lillian added one last thing;

“Oh, and Lena… Make sure your guard does a full sweep of your apartment each time she takes you home.”

Lena could feel a rush of anxiety over knowing that Kara was now going to have to be inside her house, looking around it in depth. She nodded and stood from her chair, motioning for Kara to follow her outside of the room. Kara was still very tense, stiffly trailing along.

She was silent as they walked into the elevator, standing in front of Lena silently. Lena wanted to say something; to calm her nerves about Lillian knowing who her family was. They wouldn’t be touched… Lena would make sure of that.

But Lena couldn’t say any of that just yet. They were still at L-Corp, and she didn’t want to cross over the, “Don’t be friends at work” boundary that Kara had set. So, she silently followed, despite the agonizing desire to grab Kara’s vaguely trembling hand.

She didn’t say anything until they were far away from L-Corp, a few blocks away from her apartment. “They’ll be okay, Kara,” Lena said softly, her mouth dry from anxiety. Kara didn’t look at Lena, but she could see her grip on the steering wheel tighten so much that her knuckles turned white.

Lena couldn’t stop herself. She reached forward and placed a hand on Kara’s, looking at her perfect profile. “I promise, they’ll be okay, Kara… I swear I won’t let anything happen to them.” Kara’s face flushed in visible fear and anger. Her blue eyes had become ice, staring aggressively at Lena’s hand on top of hers.

Slowly, Lena pulled away. Kara’s silence scared her, knowing that the quiet wasn’t a good sign. They were driving well over the speed limit, Kara pulling almost a little too roughly into the resident parking garage. Lena wanted her to say something. _Anything_.

They parked, Lena trying not to show her fear on her face. She fought her reflexes to squint and prepare herself for when Kara would inevitably blow up. They sat in the agonizingly silent car for what felt like forever. It became clear that Kara wasn’t going to be the first to speak, her ice blue eyes piercing straight ahead of them.

“Kara-“ Lena started, but that was the last thing she should have done. “Stop saying my name!” Kara yelled. Despite all her preparation, Lena jumped, flinching at the volume she had never heard Kara speak. Even when she was angry at Alex a few days ago she didn’t scream like she was now.

“This was the stupidest idea! I shouldn’t have done what I did! I should have never invited you to my own mother’s house. She’s in danger because of our relationship! I told you, Lena, that I wanted to keep things professional!” Now Kara finally looked Lena in the face for the first time in 2 days.

The rage, the fear, the sadness. It was all so clearly visible in her face. Her eyes were wild, cheeks flushed a crimson red. A vein bulged noticeably from her neck as she screamed. Lena could feel her own fear, physically recoiling and pushing against the door, trying to get away from Kara.

Pain ripped through her, as if someone was tearing her chest open to rip out her heart hearing Kara scream such hurtful things. “You fucking pushed me to do something I didn’t want to do, and now my family is in danger because of you!” Kara slammed a hand so hard against the wheel that Lena was surprised it didn’t bend out of shape.

Through the pain and the fear Lena could feel her own anger that she’d been repressing all day boiling. Anger over Kara’s lack of communication. Anger over her sudden 180 in emotion. Anger that Kara was blaming _her_ when she was the one who so easily accepted Lena as a friend.

“Don’t blame me this, just because you don’t want to take responsibility over so easily giving up on your stupid desire to be ‘professional’!” Lena spat back, pushing slightly off of the door. She wasn’t some dog that Kara could scream at for being ‘bad’. She was a lioness, and she wasn’t going to take shit from anyone.

Lena’s retaliation made Kara pause, shock overriding the rage in her eyes. “I’m sorry you’re scared, and I’m sorry that now your family is in this situation- I said I’d fucking fix it! That doesn’t mean this is all my fault! Take responsibility for your own damn emotions.” 

Kara was now the one leaning back, away from Lena’s rage. “You want to be fucking professional? You want to keep us strictly employer and employee? Fine! Next time you scream at me like that, I’ll make sure you’re out of National City faster than you can blink. I am your boss, Kara Danvers, not your fucking punching bag.”

Lena didn’t have time to see Kara’s reaction to her threat. She opened her car door aggressively- fuck Kara’s insistence that she always be the one to open her door –storming away from the car. When she heard the second car door open and close, she looked back to see Kara getting out.

“What are you doing?” Lena growled, stopping in place. “Escorting you into your apartment, like you’re your mother told me to do,” Kara replied with a deep frown. She didn’t look so angry anymore, her rage replaced with this discomfort of knowing she pushed Lena too much.

Lena glared for a moment, Kara catching up to her. She wanted to dismiss her, but Lena knew Kara was going to be too stubborn to shake off. With a huff, Lena turned and quickly walked away. She didn’t wait for Kara to get ahead of her to escort her, keeping her pace intentionally fast.

Kara walked in back of her the entire time, so Lena didn’t get to see her reaction to walking into the very lavish apartment building. Lena didn’t slow her pace to allow Kara to even get a good look, veering straight for the elevator.

They rode in tense silence all the way up to Lena’s penthouse, Lena aggressively passing Kara as soon as the doors of the elevator started to open up to her ornate apartment. It was basically one big room, with the bedrooms upstairs, and a large kitchen that Lena rarely used.

Lena strutted into the center of her living room, turning to look at Kara with crossed arms. She didn’t seem angry anymore, a noticeable look of regret over her actions on her face. She glanced around the apartment, pausing in front of Lena.

At first Lena wanted to give up on her anger easily, but she was having a hard time letting the situation go. She was hurt, but instead of acknowledging that, she’d rather strike out. “Well… Look wherever you want. Then you’re free to go home- you obviously don’t think it’s appropriate to spend time with your manager.”

A look that could only be described as Kara wordlessly saying, “please don’t be like that” spread across her face. The best Lena could connect to the emotion was embarrassment, and painful regret. “Lena-“ Kara started, her voice incredibly soft compared to earlier, but Lena quickly cut her off.

“Stop… I’m really not in the mood. Get your job over with, I want to be alone.” Lena had to look away, her jaw and fists clenching as she fought the overwhelming pain that rose in her chest. She wasn’t going to accept Kara’s apology- she couldn’t… Not after the things Kara said to her.

There was a long pause where Lena almost looked back up at Kara, but eventually she spoke in a choked whisper. “Okay… I won’t take long.” She backed up a few steps before turning and walking around the apartment.

She started in the kitchen, glancing around quickly before circling through the living room. Lena avoided her, going into the kitchen as soon as she left it, grabbing a wine glass and a tall bottle of a sweet sangria.

Kara went through the downstairs bathroom, then disappeared up onto the cat-walk styled stairs to look through all the bedrooms and Lena’s office. She took less than five minutes, Lena already opening her wine and pouring an entire glass full.

Lena looked up when she saw Kara’s broad frame return, trotting down the stairs. “Nothing seems wrong… I’ll be going now.” She paused, hovering around the elevator doors that served as a front door for Lena’s apartment.

The two of them held eye contact for a long moment, Lena breaking it to take a large sip of her drink. She could feel the calm before the storm inside her head, all of her emotions dulling into blankness. If Kara didn’t leave soon, she’d witness the complete breakdown that Lena was holding back.

“Good. Then I’ll see you tomorrow.” Lena replied in the same monotone voice she used on her mother. Another wave of fresh pain and regret visibly passed over Kara, but she respected Lena’s desire to be alone. She gave a curt nod before calling the elevator, waiting about 30 seconds before stepping out of Lena’s view.

Now was the time to call Kara back. Now was the time to hear her apology, and for Lena to apologize herself… Lena watched the elevator doors slide shut, the cold painted black steel audibly clicking into place. The finalizing click is what broke Lena.

Her head sagged forward, fists clenching against the cold black granite of her kitchen counter. She didn’t feel her tears falling at first, only hearing the soft _pat… pat… pat_ of them falling onto the counter. Her sobbing was silent for a few seconds before a deep, stuttering, shoulder shaking inhale opened the flood gates.

Lena wailed, falling forward onto her elbows, her hands covering her face. She gave another staggered inhale, her legs feeling like jelly as they struggled to support her weight. Lena sobbed, feeling the tears trailing against the palms of her hands.

They were hot and wet, the feeling foreign to Lena. The last time she cried this hard was when her father died. She wanted to stop, wanted to push the emotion back and never acknowledge it again, but she couldn’t. The tears were too strong to stop.

Lena continued to cry, gasping between each body wracking sob. She swallowed so much air that her stomach started to feel queasy. Eventually she felt so sick that finally Lena was able to slow her sobbing. She was still crying and hiccupping, but it wasn’t hard enough to where she couldn’t see anything through the blur of tears.

After a few minutes of trying to officially stop, Lena decided it was useless. She grabbed her glass of wine, sniffling and batting away another tear on her cheek, walking into the living room to sit down and turn on the TV. Maybe that would be able to distract her?

The pain still dully throbbed in her chest, and Lena just wanted it to go away… Maybe Kara was right; maybe it was stupid of them to get close. Did she really push so hard that Kara felt obligated to be her friend? Had she been emotionally twisting Kara, just so that she could get what she wanted?

Lena felt like a monster- like she was starting to turn into Lillian. The thought scared her even more, sending another strong wave of tears down Lena’s cheeks. She was exhausted, emotionally and physically.

At around 7:30pm, Lena decided that the entire bottle of wine she’d been drinking wasn’t working, and the best thing to do was go to sleep… Maybe then she could get control of the fear and anger that tingled just under the surface.

Maybe she would wake up and realize she was just dreaming all of this- that it was just a nightmare –and she’d wake up back in Colorado with Kara there to keep her warm, and safe.

**********

_’Hey, long time no see… Come to The Nightingale tonight?’_

Lena looked down at her phone when it had buzzed on her desk, noticing that Kara also glanced at the noise. Lena picked up the phone and read the text from James. She hadn’t spoken to him since late December. It was now early April.

She picked up the phone and texted James back.

_’What plans do you have in mind?’_

She set her phone down and returned to her computer work. She could still see Kara staring across the room at the phone, but remained silent at her own new desk in the corner of the room. Lena silently wondered why she was glaring at her phone. Did she know who Lena was texting?

_’Nothing much, just some drinks with an old friend… I wanted to introduce you to my new girlfriend.’_

New girlfriend?... Lena felt the tension in her stomach relax. If James had someone else, it meant that he wasn’t looking for what Lena thought he was looking for; a hook up.

_’Alright. What time?’_

_’Whenever you get off work. I’m already here, and I’ll let the gf know when to come over when you get here.’_

For a moment Lena was about to back out, not wanting to keep Kara out too late. However, she quickly retracted the thought. Ever since their fight the 2 of them had been incredibly distant. Kara had tried to apologize, but Lena had already done a lot of thinking the night of their fight.

Lillian had nothing against Kara- she was just a pawn in her game. She did, however, have something against her own daughter, and knew that if she hurt Kara, then it would hurt Lena. The best thing to do was keep an emotional distance from Kara.

It was obvious that Kara had a hard time fighting her own emotions- whatever they may be for Lena –so to avoid pointing out that there was an invisible wall there, Lena figured it was best to let her just run into it repeatedly until she stopped. 

She was afraid that if Kara saw the wall, she’d try to jump over it, and Lena didn’t know if she had the emotional energy to build another one. This pain had a purpose, no matter how hard it was.

“James just texted,” Lena said coolly, “I’ll be going to The Nightingale tonight.” Lena was careful not to say ‘we’. Kara kept her face stoic, but there was a brief flash of anger at the name ‘James’. She didn’t say anything about him, just nodding and mumbling, “Yes ma’am.”

Lena swallowed hard, returning to her work. Even after almost 4 months of keeping her distance to Kara, she still struggled to keep her emotions in check. She wanted to talk to her and be friends so badly, but it was clear that it was too dangerous to do that.

Lena worked for another few hours before deciding to call it a night early. In all honesty she wanted to see James just to get it over with, and then go home before it was too late. Lena still subconsciously was thinking of Kara, and not wanting to impede on her evening plans.

She wordlessly got up, closing all of her work things down before grabbing her purse. Kara stood straight away, shutting her laptop and following Lena out of the office. She dismissed Jessica early, ignoring the fact that Jessica was obviously glancing between Lena and Kara with a slight look of discomfort- feeling the tension between them.

Kara drove them to the nightclub, Lena texting James that they were pulling up. James seemed a little too excited, but Lena just chalked it up to over exaggerating, which he tended to do when he was being extra fake. It set Lena on edge, sliding out of the car as Kara held her door.

The Nightingale was busy; the music booming so loud Lena could feel the vibration in her chest. She hadn’t been to the club since Kara started working for her over 7 months ago. Kara took Lena up to the upper balcony, finding James easily at their usual table. It was surprising that Kara even remembered where he liked to sit, considering they only meet here once.

When James saw Kara and Lena walking towards them, he smiled wide and stood. “Lena! It’s so good to see you again!” He brushed past Kara and hugged Lena before she could stop him. Instantly Kara grabbed James by the shoulder and yanked him off, a look of protective anger on her face.

James looked pissed for a moment, stumbling back a few steps. The anger went away quickly, though, as he fixed his leather jacket. “Sorry, sorry… Protocol, I know.” James mockingly held his arms out as if he was about to get pat down by Kara.

Lena could see the veiled anger in Kara, knowing what to look for. James either didn’t notice or didn’t care, laughing and turning his attention back to Lena. “I also brought my old buddy, I hope you don’t mind.” That’s when Lena noticed the rather burley looking Asian man with both arms covered in tattoos lounging at the semi-circle booth.

“Evening… My name is Li Yang, it’s a pleasure to finally meet you.” Li Yang waved a hand casually, sitting with both arms stretched across the back of the booth. Lena politely smiled, nodding to the unknown man. She felt irritated about the uninvited guest, knowing that it set Kara even more on edge. Of course she couldn’t voice that, however.

“Come on, sit down. Let’s have a few drinks!” James grabbed Lena’s shoulder and guided her to the booth, quickly letting go when Kara took an aggressive step forward, about to remove his hand for him. Again he laughed it off, sitting down next to Lena as she shuffled down the booth. Both men were on either side of her, and she instantly regretted her seating position.

Regardless, she just ordered her favorite drink off of the iPad menu, glancing to Kara who begrudgingly stood to the left of the booth, glancing around the busy club. James started small talk, asking how Lena was doing, and what she had been up to at work.

Li Yang seemed interested as she spoke vaguely about her job, not giving a ton of detail into her life. Lena felt awkward, hoping to get the night over with so she could go home and drink in comfort.

The cocktail she ordered came quickly, Lena thanking the waiter as she sipped the sweet beverage. Li Yang and James spoke for a while, Li talking about his own job along the coast of National City. Lena didn’t even think to question the area, knowing a lot of people worked in the position Li was in.

They talked for about 2 hours before Lena started to get restless. She questioned James a few times were his new girlfriend was, considering that was the only reason she was there; to fact check him. James brushed her off by either saying she was stuck in traffic, or pretending he couldn’t hear her over the booming music and continuing onto a different topic.

Although she was annoyed, none of this set Lena’s alarms off. To her it was James being James. Kara, however, started to get more and more suspicious. The final time Lena brought up the missing girlfriend, and James brushed it off, Kara pushed off from where she was leaning to stand fully and look at James.

“I’m about to make you an official security threat if you don’t answer Ms. Luthor’s question right now.” Her blue eyes were that terrifying ice grey that told Lena exactly how angry she was. The last time she saw her eyes like that they were screaming at each other in Kara’s car.

James stared down Kara, openly showing his own annoyance. However, it wasn’t him who spoke. Instead, it was Li Yang who mumbled something directed towards Kara. At first Lena assumed it was only herself that couldn’t hear what he said, but when Kara turned her glare towards Li and gruffed out a sharp, “What?” She realized that Li Yang was purposefully talking quiet.

“Come closer so you can hear me, bitch,” Li Yang said a little louder. Kara, now pissed that she was being called names, took the bait. She loomed closer to Li Yang, who stood to meet her. She was taller by at least 4 inches, the stockier man rather short.

Kara was about to reply back, when all of a sudden Li lunged forward with something in his hand. The night club was so busy that no one questioned the struggle. Kara had caught Li Yang by the shoulders, but his arms were longer.

Lena realized too late that the thing in his hand was a syringe of some kind, injecting the unknown mixture straight into Kara’s neck. Whatever it was didn’t have an immediate effect, Kara able to shove Li Ying down to the floor.

James was already up and out of the booth before Lena could warn Kara. He grabbed her outstretched arms from behind, yanking them to her back. Kara yelped through a clenched jaw, trying to struggle out of James’ tight grip, but he just lifted her arms up at an angle that they weren’t supposed to go.

Lena rushed to get out of the booth and attack James, but Li Yang was already up and grabbing her by the arm. Lena wasn’t very strong. She was lean, and had muscle, but compared to Li she had nothing. She couldn’t fight as Li Yang pulled her in close and bear hugged her from behind, pinning her arms to the side.

By now whatever was in the syringe was taking effect in Kara. Her eyes got droopy, and her legs bowed out at odd angles. James grinned mischievously, relaxing his hold in Kara and switching her around so she was draping an arm across his shoulders.

“Uh oh, looks like our friend had too much to drink,” James said in a falsely happy voice. Lena quickly realized that this entire thing had been a set up. “Do anything stupid and we kill both of you,” Li Yang growled in Lena’s ear.

Lena clenched her jaw in rage, staring daggers at James who only smiled wider, obviously overjoyed about what was going on. Now it made sense about who Li Yang was. He worked in Emerald Dragon territory. James had sold her out.

“Come on, let’s get little miss Kara into the back seat of my car, and we can get her home safely,” James said in a projected voice, in case anyone was listening to the conversation. From an outsider’s perspective this just looked like Kara was stumbling around drunk, and Li and James were helping her and Lena out.

The two larger men took both of the women out of The Nightingale, no one questioning them as they left. Lena was silently screaming at the oblivious bouncers in her head, but as she looked at them she realized they weren’t the men who knew her and the Immortals.

Kara and Lena were taken to an unrecognizable SUV, James opening the door and heaving the very groggy Kara into the back seat. Li Yang forcefully shoved Lena into the car as well, slamming the door. There were 3 other Emerald Dragons waiting inside the car, all of them sneering and grinning to Lena who only glared.

She was sitting next to Kara, so she took a second to kneel down between the seats and shift her lolling head to look at her. Kara looked completely drugged out, her pupils engulfing her blue iris’. Her jaw hung loose, trying to say some sort of words that only came out as garbled mumbles.

“It’s okay, Kara. Don’t worry, it’ll be okay,” Lena whispered. She was trying to keep the fear out of her voice, but she could see her hands shaking against Kara’s cheeks. Kara didn’t seem to comprehend her words, her eyes glazed over as they slowly closed.

Someone grabbed Lena by the shoulders and shoved her back into her seat roughly, Lena snarling in anger. Li Yang jumped into the driver seat, James in the passenger seat. He looked back to Lena and smiled gleefully. “Comfy back there?”

Lena narrowed her eyes at her former friend. She swirled her tongue around in her mouth and spit a huge wad of saliva straight into James’ face. James flinched, recoiling to wipe his face. The rage he’d been hiding until now was released via a punch so strong it knocked Lena right out.

**********

All Lena could feel was a throbbing pain in her head. Her left ear was ringing loudly, and her jaw felt incredibly sore. Her head was laying back, but Lena was aware that she was sitting in some sort of chair. When she tried moving, she could feel restraints on her arms and legs, holding her to the chair.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

As the ringing went down, Lena started to recognize other noises around the dark room- she still hadn’t opened her eyes, afraid as to what she’d see. Someone was screaming through clenched teeth. There was another noise accompanied with the screaming.

At first Lena just thought it was some more weird ringing in her ear, but quickly Lena realized it was an electric buzzing noise. Like a Taser, but considerably louder and more violent. Each time Lena heard the terrible buzz, she heard the screaming.

It didn’t process until she fifth time she heard the scream that it was in fact Kara’s voice. Lena quickly opened her eyes, wincing at the bright spotlight that was shining right on her. She looked around the otherwise dark room, trying to find where she could hear Kara.

Directly to her right, a few yards away, she could see James holding what looked to be an amped up cattle prod to the outside of her thigh. Each time he pressed it against her leg, Kara would scream through her clenched jaw, shuttering as the electric current pulsed through her leg. She looked as if she was trying to shy away from the prod, but because she was tied down there was nowhere to go.

Lena balked, seeing the person she considered to be the strongest person in the world openly showing physical pain. It made her stomach churn in a mixture of fear for the woman she cared for, and rage towards the man who was inflicting the pain.

“Hey!” Lena screamed to get James’ attention. It worked, James instantly pulling the prod away at the noise. Kara’s head sagged, sweat streaming down her face as hair stuck to her forehead. She panted heavily, looking over to Lena with tired, fearful eyes.

“Ah, you’re finally awake… Sorry for hitting you so hard, but you made me do it,” James said in a smooth voice, strolling over to grab Lena’s sore jaw. He turned her so he could see what she only assumed was a nasty bruise on the side of her face.

Lena tried to yank her face away and bite James’ hand, but he pulled away too quickly. He chuckled before growling, “You bitch.” He didn’t punch her, instead backhanding Lena so hard she physically saw stars in her vision.

Kara started to cuss at him, but as soon as he threatened her with the prod again she went silent, pure hatred in her eyes. “You know, Lena,” James said after smirking at Kara, “You could have avoided all of this.” His voice was calm and smooth, as if he was trying to seduce someone in the room.

Lena glared silently at him, knowing he was going to continue. “If you had just kept up with our agreement, none of us would be in this situation.” Lena wrinkled her nose in rage, holding eye contact. “What fucking agreement?” She spat. It was already getting incredibly hot under the spotlight, sweat prickling along her hairline and neck.

James jerked forward and grabbed Lena by the throat, squeezing so hard that her esophagus was closed shut. “Our agreement that you’d be my fuck toy whenever I wanted… But then you had to go and throw me away like a piece of trash on Christmas.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lena’s mind jumped back to their last phone conversation. The day she had broken off their ‘agreement’ officially… They day she had admitted that she felt more than just friendly feelings towards Kara- to herself, that is.

“You seriously sold me out to the Emerald Dragons because you couldn’t get your dick wet?” Lena choked through James’ hold. He loosened his hand to allow her to talk properly. “I sold you out to the Emerald Dragons because you thought you had control over the wrong person… That, and because they offered me millions of dollars to get you over to The Nightingale.”

James smiled maliciously, blood lust dripping from each word he spoke. “Winn was right, you’re just some corrupt bastard who cares more about the money than the morals,” Kara gruffed next to them. Rage returned to James’ eyes as he slowly turned to look at Kara.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

He didn’t even say anything, just adjusted the cattle prod in his hand and pressed it toughly into Kara’s side. She tried bending away from the electric rod, jaw clenching tightly and eyes squeezing closed as she cried out in pain.

James didn’t pull back for at least 30 seconds, and when he did he only paused for an extra second before shoving the prod back into Kara’s side. “Stop it! Stop! Leave her alone!” Lena screamed at the top of her lungs.

The blow that struck her so hard in the face that she was physically knocked backwards in the chair didn’t come from James. Instead it came from Li Yang, who Lena hadn’t noticed enter the room. The back of her head smacked against the concrete floor with a sickening _CRACK_ , Lena struggling to stay conscious.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Do you know how long I’ve been trying to get my hands on the princess of the Immortals?... _Months_ … The last time I sent men after you, they came back in 5 body bags. My boys were too scared to go after you again, saying you had a demon protecting you.” Li Yang roughly set Lena’s chair back upright.

“So then, when I realized how useless my own men were, I decided to just prove to them myself that you don’t have such a powerful being protecting you… And I was right! All you’ve got is some woman who can’t even protect herself.” Li Yang started to laugh, looking at the still panting Kara.

He grabbed a chair, facing it backwards as he sat down. “Do you know what I thought when I found out _the_ James Olsen was looking for me? I thought, ‘He’s nuts! Is he really trying to sell out his good friend? The friend that’s giving him so much power? The one who’s put him where he is today? The friend that’s funding his floosy business so that he can write complete shit?!’”

Li Yang glanced over to James, who dared not to physically act on the anger that was so clear on his face. Li chuckled, knowing the power that he held in his hands. “But when I met up with our mutual friend here, I realized he was just as stupid as I thought-“

“Hey! Watch what you say, Yang… Without me, you wouldn’t have been able to get her,” James interrupted, gesturing towards Lena when he spoke. Obviously he wasn’t smart enough to verbally hold back. Li Yang slowly and calmly looked over to James, that same psychotically amused look on his face.

“Just because you sent a few texts and twisted your relationship to your advantage doesn’t make you smart, Mr. Olsen… If anything, it makes me doubtful to ever trust you.” Li Yang stood, turning to face James. Lena saw the gun in the back of his waist band, but James hadn’t.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

In one swift motion, Li pulled out the pistol and shot James in the chest. The sound was deafening in the small room, Lena leaning forward in attempts to cover her ears. It was futile, 2 more shots ringing out in quick succession as Li Yang stood over James. 

There was a small pause of silence in which Lena could hear James’ hollow, rattling breathe. He laid on the ground, crimson blood quickly pooling around his body as his lungs filled with the salty substance. Lena wanted to look away, but she couldn’t. She stared in wide eyes at the dying man, her body starting to tremble as she realized how much shit Kara and her were in.

The voice of Li Yang brought her out of her silent panic. “As I was saying,” He sat back down in his seat, “Now that I have you- and the woman who killed my men –I’m going to make this fun… For me, that is.” The look in Li Yang’s eyes made Lena want to cry and beg for mercy.

However, her pride got in the way of that. There was no way she was going to die a sobbing, squealing mess. So instead of showing her fear, she clenched her jaw and glared at Li Yang. Maybe her lack of reaction would make him bored, so he’d just get it over with.

Li Yang stood, shoving his chair off to the side. “I’ll start off simple,” He chuckled, stepping away to grab something. When he came back, Lena realized he was wrapping his fist in some sort of bandage to protect his knuckles.

He shifted his stance so it was wide, wheeling his fast back before striking Lena straight in the gut. All the air was knocked out of her, Lena grunting involuntarily. Next to her, Kara was visibly struggling. She cussed and screamed at Li Yang, looking like a fierce wolf protecting a pack member.

Li Yang paid no mind, continuing his assault on Lena. He struck her countless times- mostly in the stomach –until she was throwing up the booze she’d been drinking earlier. Once both of them were panting, he took a small break.

Next was Kara, who took the beating just as bravely as Lena expected. However, this was probably the easiest part of what Li Yang had planned. He used an assortment of tools, mostly for bludgeoning, but a few were knives that sliced their skin open like it was as thin as paper.

After what felt like days- but in reality was only a few hours –Li Yang finally stopped. He looked just as tired as the girls, panting as he held the strap of leather with bits of metal on the end that he’d been using as a whip against Kara. He had shifted Kara from her seat- punching her repeatedly in the jaw so she didn’t retaliate –onto a pole.

He had duct taped Kara’s wrists together, feeling confident in her security to the pole. “I’ll be back,” Li Yang panted, pointing at Lena, “To continue this with you in a little bit.” He tossed the bloody whip down onto the basement floor before stumbling up a flight of stairs.

As soon as Lena heard a door closed, she turned to Kara. “Are you okay?! Holy shit… Oh god, Kara… I’m so sorry- so, so, so sorry.” Lena couldn’t hold back the tears as she watched Kara slowly start to push herself back up to her knees. Her face was bloody- a stray piece of metal had sliced her right cheek open –and her back was so sliced apart that her tank top was only holding on by a few strands.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“I’ll be okay, Lena,” She grunted, her voice guttural and low. Her hair had fallen out of its bun long ago, blonde mixing with blood. “I’m the one who should be saying she’s sorry… I didn’t recognize the threat fast enough… Didn’t protect you.” Kara sounded exhausted, sitting back on her legs as she rested her forehead against the pole.

The sight only made Lena cry harder, hating that someone she cared so much about was hurting so badly. Kara looked back at her, the terrible feeling in Lena’s chest being reflected onto Kara’s face. It looked like tears were mixing with blood and sweat on her cheeks, but Lena couldn’t tell.

Realizing that as soon as Li Yang came back, this would be the last time Lena got to say anything to Kara, she decided now was the best time to say what had been on her mind for so long. “I’m so sorry I’ve been ignoring you… I care about you so, so much… But I thought that my feelings would put you in danger, so I pushed you away.

“I thought that not telling you would make it so you didn’t try and become friends again. I thought you’d give up, and then you’d be safe. I’m so sorry, I was so wrong… I’m so sorry for our fight last year, and-“ Kara suddenly interrupted her, eyes fixed heavily on her blood and sweat covered face. “Lena…”

Her voice was strong, trying to calm Lena down. “We’re not going to die here… I promised I’d protect you, and that’s exactly what I’m going to do… I’ll get us out of here, I swear.” Her sure voice set Lena at ease. She stared at Kara for a long moment before nodding. “I trust you.”

With her words of reassurance, Kara turned away to look at her bindings. They were duct tape, multiple layers wrapped around her wrists. Kara shifted so she was standing, taking multiple breaths before pressing herself completely against the pole, holding her arms out as far as possible.

In one swift movement, she threw herself backwards, yanking her arms apart. The tape, being pulled apart from both the motion of Kara’s arms and the pole, broke with a soft _pop_. Kara stumbled backwards, just managing to catch herself before she fell into the chair she had been sitting in previously.

Lena stared in amazement, surprised that that actually worked. Kara stood and quickly grabbed the first knife she saw, hurrying over to Lena to cut the zip ties off of her wrists and ankles. As soon as Lena was free, she bolted up and bear hugged Kara.

Kara groaned in pain, causing Lena to suddenly pull away. Kara didn’t let her go, however, quickly wrapping her arms around Lena’s waste. “Gently,” she whispered. Lena slowly reached up and wrapped her arms around Kara’s neck, standing up on her toes to bury her face into Kara’s shoulder.

They held the embrace for only a moment before Kara pulled away. “We have to get out of here… Can you walk?” She looked Lena over, frowning at all of her deep wounds. Lena had taken a pretty bad smack to the knee, but despite the throbbing it felt safe enough to walk on. “I’ll be okay… Will you?”

“I’ll make it… We need to get out of here- quietly… We don’t know how many there are.” Kara backed away, looking around the room. She held her back stiff, and Lena knew with dread in her stomach that her injuries were really going to prohibit her fighting abilities. She’d have to be the one protecting Kara, instead of vice versa.

Kara’s eyes landed on the body of James. Li Yang had dragged him off to the side, propping him against a wall earlier. Kara went over to the corpse, kneeling down stiffly and patting down the front pockets of his pants. She pulled out a packet of blood soaked blood, and an equally soaked cell phone.

Lena gasped seeing the phone, limping over to take it from Kara’s offered hands. As Lena started to wipe off the screen, Kara rolled James over onto his face with a painful grunt. Lena’s heart beat was thundering in her chest as she pressed the power button, praying to anyone listening that the phone still worked.

The screen lit up, showing James’ baseball screen saver. Lena felt no sort of sentimentality towards the picture, or her former friend. He got them in this shit- he deserved what came to him for all Lena cared. “Do you know the code?” Kara asked, noticing the illuminated screen in the dark room.

Unfortunately, Lena had no idea, her heart sinking. When she shook her head, though, Kara didn’t look distraught. Instead she offered Lena something in her hand. “Here, switch.” Lena took the cold black object that Kara held out, realizing that it was a tiny pistol. The pistol that Lena had always kept in her purse.

Kara took the phone, looking at it with piercing blue eyes. Lena awkwardly held the pistol, unsure of what to do with it. It’d been a mirical that she was able to use it the first time she shot an Emerald Dragon, so she wasn’t sure if she could do it all over again. At first Kara tried a few simple passcodes, but nothing worked. So instead she picked up James’ stiff hand, pressing his thumb against the home button.

The phone opened completely, Kara sharply inhaling in surprise. The first thing she did was opening the settings of the phone, changing the pin code to something easy to remember, Lena watching over her shoulder. Once Kara was certain they could get back into the phone, she started to look for a way to call someone.

She dialed 911, looking back over to Lena who tensely awaited what was going to happen next. Kara frowned when she put the phone to her ear, Lena able to hear a robotic woman saying, “Sorry, but that number cannot be reached right now.”

Kara pulled the phone away, a wave of anger and frustration passing over her face as she clenched her jaw. “No service,” She grunted, visibly struggling to not throw the phone in her rage. “That just means we’re going to have to get upstairs- to the roof or something.” Lena put a gentle hand onto Kara’s stiff shoulder.

Kara took multiple deep breaths before nodding, standing up and slipping the phone into her pocket. “Fine… Then let’s go, before Yang gets back.” Before she could walk past her, Lena grabbed Kara’s arm. “Wait… Are you _sure_ you’re okay to do this?... I can lead, I’m in better shape than you right now.”

She didn’t even let Lena finish before Kara started to shake her head. “I can’t let you do that. I’ll be fine, Lena. Just watch my back, okay? You’ve got the gun.” They held eye contact for a long while, but Lena knew she couldn’t fight with Kara. So, she just silently nodded, watching Kara take the lead.

They slowly and quietly climbed up the spiraling stairs, coming up to a door at the top. Lena could feel her anxiety rising with her fear as Kara placed a crimson covered hand on the door knob, turning it at an agonizingly slow pace. 

Lena was kind of surprised that it wasn’t locked, but Li Yang seemed pretty cocky in his abilities to keep the two girls in the basement. The click of the latch pulling back completely was deafening in the silence, Kara physically pausing.

When no one came barging through the door, Kara seemed to decide that it was safe to push the door open. She didn’t open it completely, just enough to look through a crack. Lena was behind her, unable to see anything past her still bleeding back.

Kara’s grip tightened around the long bowie knife in her hand, getting ready for anything to happen as she pushed the door open more. Her foot steps were silent as she edged out into what looked to be a long hallway. There were other doors along the walls, the basement door situated at the very end, so they could see straight down to another set of stairs.

At first Lena couldn’t figure out where they were, but when she started to smell the musky scent of damp mops and cleaning liquid, she realized they must be in some sort of apartment building- although by the fading scent, and the thick, dusty cobwebs in the corner of the hallway it seemed like the building was long abandoned.

Even though Lena felt confident that there was no one else down the hallway with them, Kara walked slow and quiet, her knife held out in front of her. Lena heled her pistol in both hands, finger hovering to the side of the trigger.

They crept all the way to the stairs, Lena feeling the need to point her pistol up towards the top as they got closer. There was a man standing there, smoking a cigarette. His back was turned to the girls, but judging by the theatrical Chinese mask hanging loosely in his free hand, he was another Emerald Dragon.

Kara turned to Lena silently, pressing a finger up to her own lips to signal for Lena to be silent. She nodded, watching Kara return her attention to the man. It didn’t surprise Lena while she watched Kara make absolutely no sound as she walked up the concrete steps, but it was still incredibly impressive seeing her continue to use her Spec Ops skills.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The man didn’t even notice Kara was behind him until it was too late. She took one hand and put it over his mouth, taking her bowie knife and slicing it straight across his neck. Even from this distance Lena could see the blood splattering along the walls and floor. The noise of liquid being poured over a hard surface softly echoed down to her.

Kara held the man’s mouth tightly as he struggled, reaching up to grab at her face. His knees started to give out, both him and Kara slowly kneeling to the ground. His struggling started to considerably slow, but it took at least 30 seconds before he fully stopped moving. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lena stared up at Kara in horrified awe, her mouth going dry as she watched her let go of the body and turn to her. She was still kneeling, gesturing for Lena to come up the stairs. She went up much less quietly than Kara, but there looked to be no one up on the landing where Kara knelt.

The landing lead to another door, this one with a long rectangular window. Kara stiffly moved to the door, still crouched down. She looked up carefully, her knife still in her hands. She looked for a long moment before carefully sliding back down to her knee.

“I need you to stay here,” Kara whispered when Lena moved over to sit next to her. Instantly Lena started to shake her head. “No, out of the question.” Kara sighed, giving Lena a distraught look. “Please… There’s 3 of them. They’re sleeping, but I can’t risk you making noise.”

They were sleeping… Kara was going to kill them in their sleep. Lena frowned, furrowing her eyebrows. She reached behind Kara, grabbing the cellphone out of her back pocket. There were still no bars, Lena cussing under her breath.

“I’ll be watching through the window, just in case you need help,” Lena whispered in a determined voice. Kara looked reluctant, but Lena wasn’t going to back down. She knew what she was going to see, but she was ready for it. There was no way she was going to let Kara go in there with no back up ready.

Eventually Kara agreed, moving to slip through the door. Lena did as she was told, squatting awkwardly to look through the bottom of the window. There was no way Lena could have prepared herself for what she was watching. It was grotesque and bloody, but she refused to look away in fear that Kara was going to get hurt. 

She came out safe, however, looking back to Lena and motioning for her to come into the room. There were windows that showed the outside, but judging by how dark they were Lena had to assume that it was still dark outside. It felt like it was incredibly early in the morning- maybe around 3AM.

“Is there still no bars?” Kara asked as they carefully walked past the room full of cots and trash, into a stairwell. Lena checked, frowning and shaking her head to see they still couldn’t call 911. “I think this place is a dead zone… Our best bet is to try the roof.” Which meant they had to go through every single floor of the building.

Kara didn’t look excited, but she continued to lead the way up the stairs. The layout of the building was weird, the stairs taking them only up a few floors before spitting them out into a hallway of empty apartments.

As they carefully peaked around the corner, Lena realized there were at least five men moving around this floor. It looked as if they were using this area as a hangout area. There was no way they could get through here without being spotted.

Kara tried to time their exit out of the stairwell as best as she could, but as soon as they got a few yards down the hallway- in the direction of the next visible stairwell –they heard someone yell something in Chinese in back of them.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lena felt Kara grab her and yank her into the closest room, just as a spray of bullets splattered right where they had been standing. Of course they had backed into a room that had 2 men in it, both of them looking surprised at their sudden visitors.

Kara didn’t give the first man time to react. She jammed her knife straight into his chest, leaving the weapon behind as she bull rushed the next man. He tried to grab the gun in his waistband, but Kara was already barreling into him. She knocked him back so hard that he crashed right through the window in back of him.

He fell 5 stories below, screaming the entire way. Lena didn’t have time to focus on the noise, hearing the rapid footsteps of many more men running their direction. She grabbed the knife from the chest of the first body, throwing it to Kara just in time to turn around and point her gun at the first chest she saw in the doorway.

She shot the man before he could draw his gun, watching him stumble backwards and fall. Kara grabbed the gun off of the dead man behind Lena, taking out the next Emerald Dragon. Her aim was much better, so Lena took this as an opportunity to figure out how to get out of the room, instead of standing their ground.

There was a large hole in the wall that Lena could see straight into the next apartment. Ducking under Kara’s extended arm, she grabbed a random wooden bat that had been lounging next to where the window man had been sitting.

Lena’s body was already exhausted from the hours of pain she had endured, but the fresh adrenaline that was pumping through her allowed her to ignore the pain and lack of energy. The walls of the apartment were already rotted out, so it made smashing through the wall easy.

“Fuck!” Lena heard Kara yell, spinning around to see that she had run out of ammunition. The man she’d managed to miss rushed into the apartment, a knife matching Kara’s in his hand. They collided together, Kara grappling the man, holding his weapon away from her by his wrist.

Lena was moving before she could decide what to do, lifting her bat high and smashing it straight down onto the man’s shoulder. It stunned him, screaming out in pain as he dropped his knife. Kara wasted no time in burying hers into his neck repeatedly, only stopping when Lena grabbed her and started to drag her in the direction of the hole in the wall.

They didn’t have time to spare, more footsteps thundering down the hallway. They jumped through the hole, into a closed off apartment. Kara was the first to notice the fire exit, dragging Lena over to the emergency window. As she smashed it out with Lena’s now almost splintered bat, Lena shot at the person who followed them.

She missed, but luckily Kara was able to grab her knife that she had set down, dodging the person’s brass knuckles and slicing them across the stomach. They fell, but Kara had learned her lesson, not taking the time to finish the job.

Lena was already jumping through the window, feeling a piece of jagged glass slicing across her bicep. She winced, but didn’t pause to look at the wound. Kara struggled a little bit more to get through the window, her back really starting to impede her dexterity.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Two more figures barged into the apartment, but by then the two women were already going up to the roof- if they had gone down they would have landed right in the parking lot, where a group of Emerald Dragons would have been waiting for them.

As they ran up the rusted stairs, Lena fumbled for the phone in her pocket. Now that they were outside, and high enough, there were two bars on the phone. “I’ve got it!” Lena called over the sound of their thundering footsteps.

Lena dialed 911 straight away, gasping for air as they reached the top floor of the building. Kara busted through the window, ducking into the empty, rotting apartments again. There seemed to be no one up with them just yet.

As the phone rang, Lena jumped through the window, her heart doing summer saults when she heard the operator on the other end. “911, where’s your emergency?” The woman’s voice was all to calm for what was going down around Lena.

“I don’t know, but I need help! Please tell me you can track us- me and my friend are stuck in a building, and there’s a bunch of men trying to kill us!” Lena felt crazy as she spoke, running after Kara as she led the way down the hallway, trying to find the stairs again.

There was a long pause before the woman on the phone said, “Hello?... Is anyone there? You’re breaking up, I can’t really hear you… Did you say someone’s trying to kill you?... Ma’am?” Lena’s heart dropped, pulling the phone away to glance at the bars. They were back inside the dead zone. When Lena tried to talk some more, the line went dead.

“Fuck, shit, bitch, cunt!” Lena screamed, a wave of hopelessness washing over her. “We need to get up to the roof, then maybe it’ll work again,” Lena said to Kara through her gasping breath. Now she could feel the extent of her wounds, pain throbbing through her entire body. She couldn’t even fathom how Kara was still standing.

“Lena, I don’t… Okay, let’s keep going up.” Kara frowned, glancing behind them to see if anyone was following them. The men must have not gone onto the fire escape, using an alternative way. The girls managed to find their way to a short flight of stairs that lead up to the roof, Kara having to kick through the locked door.

The wind felt like a hurricane around them, howling in Lena’s ears. Kara worked on barring the door with a rusted pipe that she had pulled off of the side of an old AC unit, but Lena had little hope that it would keep the Emerald Dragons away from them.

Lena grabbed the phone again, whooping for joy when she saw full bars. Again she dialed 911, hearing the same voice of the woman who picked up previously. “We need help! Please, they’re going to catch us if someone doesn’t help soon!” Lena yelled over the wind, hoping the woman could hear her.

“I was just able to get a trace on the call before it disconnected, ma’am. We’ve got cruisers on the way, but they’re going to be at least 5 minutes. Is there somewhere you could hide?” Lena quickly relayed the information to Kara, who looked frustrated, knowing they didn’t have 5 minutes. “No, we can’t, we’re up on a-“

The sound of the roof door banging caught Lena’s attention. There was no place for them to duck and cover- the AC units were thin aluminum that would be torn apart like paper if they were ever shot at –and no buildings to jump to.

Lena could do nothing but drop the phone and aim her half empty pistol at the door, Kara rushing to stand in front of her protectively, just enough out of the way for Lena to get a good shot at whoever ran through the door.

After a few more jolts the rusted pipe gave out, the door bursting wide open. Half a dozen men stormed onto the roof, guns drawn and pointing towards Kara and Lena. They didn’t shoot, however, only forming a line.

Li Yang strolled onto the roof, an oddly relaxed smile on his face. Lena could see his rage, however. He was angry that he’d been undermined by people he considered lesser than him. He wanted them dead more than anything, but something was stopping him.

Lena realized that someone higher than him obviously wanted them alive. That’s why Li Yang hadn’t killed them hours ago in the basement- nor why the Emerald Dragons chased them up the fire escape. They needed information from Lena before they could kill her.

“I must admit I’m surprised you managed to get all the way to this point,” Li Yang chuckled, “I thought your body guard would have passed out by now- or gotten herself shot while she protected you.” Lena said nothing, simply glaring at Li Yang. Sure, she had a pistol in her hand, but that didn’t mean she could use it very well.

Yang opened his mouth to drone on more when a cacophony of gun fire sounded from down below; able to be heard even over the howling wind. Li Yang looked confused, glancing towards the edge of the roof.

He turned to his men and gestured for them to leave, “Deal with that… I can take care of these two on my own.” All 6 men followed his orders, running back into the dilapidated apartments. What was going on down below? Did the police arrive? Lena hadn’t heard any sirens.

“Now then… Come with me, and I promise not to hurt you anymore.” He was speaking to Lena, not Kara. She felt rage well up inside of her, angry at the fact that someone was putting someone she deeply cared about in danger. “Go fuck yourself,” Lena growled before pulling the trigger of her gun.

_click_

What… Why didn’t it shoot? Lena’s eyes went wide, realizing it had jammed.

There was a palpable pause where everyone processed what had happened. Then, in a rush of movement, Kara and Li Yang charged simultaneously.

They collided into each other, Kara trying to grapple Li Yang to the ground. However, due to her exhaustion and injuries, Yang was able to out maneuver her. He grabbed her waist and lifted her up, tossing Kara like a sack of flower in the opposite direction of Lena. She landed heavily in the gravel roof top, audibly grunting in pain.

With Kara out of the immediate way, Li Yang was able to run at Lena, who tried to run, backing up as far as she could in shock and fear. Neither of them were paying attention to the edge of the roof top, so when Yang caught up to Lena, he blindly tackled her.

At first Lena thought she was going to feel the rough gravel dig into her within seconds, but the sensation of half her body falling made Lena realize that she was tumbling over the edge of the roof. Her instant reaction was to grab the lip of the edge, managing to catch herself for a split second.

Li Yang, however, also managed to catch onto something; Lena’s other wrist. He had fallen past her, grabbing her to save himself. The jolting of Li’s weight caused Lena’s grip to slip regardless.

Lena felt as if she dropped ten stories, but in reality it was less than six inches before a hand roughly grabbed her wrist.

Lena’s shoulder was yanked painfully at the second jolt, Li Yang’s weight still pulling her down roughly. She looked up to see Kara hanging halfway over the edge of the roof, gripping onto Lena with one hand, and keeping herself from slipping forward anymore with the other.

Kara’s face was bright red with effort, her jaw clenched and her teeth bared as she audibly screamed, struggling to keep hold of Lena’s sweat and blood covered wrist. Lena knew that she couldn’t hold both her- let alone her and Li Yang –for very long.

Li Yang was trying to climb up Lena’s other arm, but as she looked down she saw the opportunity to knock him off. Lifting her leg up, she struck Yang in the face. The first kick didn’t do anything, just made them jolt a little bit more, Kara yelling out again at the pain.

The second kick is what knocked him off. Li Yang’s grip slipped, Lena curling her legs away from his flailing arms as he free fell. 

He went down 10 stories before landing in a splatter of red. 

Lena stared down at him for a few heart beats, shocked that her kicking actually worked.

The sound of Kara still struggling made Lena look up. Kara was too injured to be able to pull them both up. Her arms were weak, and Lena could feel her trembling. Lena herself felt her own exhaustion, and the burning pain in both her shoulders wasn’t going away. There was no way she could climb up.

There was a sinking feeling of realization in Lena’s chest as she realized that if Kara didn’t let her go, they’d both fall. All Lena could do was swing her dangling arm up to grab onto Kara’s white-knuckled hand. She could feel the sweat of Kara’s palm making her ever so slightly slide.

“Come on, come on… No, stop- you can’t fall!” Kara groaned through her clenched teeth. Tears were starting to fall from her eyes, Lena watching Kara slowly starting to break down. The sight made her own eyes start to water, knowing that this was going to be the last thing she saw.

“Kara… Kara, please, let me go,” Lena mumbled, her voice cracking with emotion.

How cruel the world was; Showing her the most beautiful person in the world, yet tearing her away before they could even fully admit how they felt.

“No! I can do this!” Kara screamed, trying to free her other hand to grab onto Lena’s. That only made Kara fall forward a little bit more, Lena gasping as butterflies fluttered through her.

Now both of them were crying. Lena wanted to scream at the universe, telling it how much she hated the decision she was going to have to make for Kara… There was no way she was going to let go on her own.

“I’m so sorry… I’m so sorry I never got to tell you exactly how I feel about you…” Lena dropped one of her hands, letting the other one release Kara’s wrist. She didn’t just drop straight away, feeling Kara’s grip getting impossibly tighter.

Kara was screaming out in denial, “No, no, _stop it_ , no!” Lena could feel her skin starting to slide from Kara’s iron grip. She couldn’t look up- couldn’t watch Kara’s burning eyes as tears fell from them -so she squeezed her own eyes shut.

Right as she anticipated her hand to completely slip from Kara’s, she opened her mouth to say the 3 words she’d been wanting to say for over 4 months now.

What stopped her was the rising sensation she felt.

Lena’s eyes flew open, seeing not only Kara’s face, but Finn and Ammarah’s. They were kneeling over the edge, grabbing Kara by the shoulders and hoisting her up. Lena’s free hanging arm swung up and she grabbed Kara’s hand quickly, realizing what was happening.

They were saved. They weren’t going to die. Lena didn’t have to fall.

Finn let go of Kara to grab onto Lena’s arms, pulling her up enough that Lena was able to swing a leg up and help. Lena crawled back up onto the roof, panting along with the others. She didn’t even get a moment to sit back on her legs and push the hair from her face before she felt the heavy form of Kara tackle her in a tight embrace.

Lena paused for only half a second, surprised by the hug, before wrapping her arms tightly around Kara’s neck, pulling her head into her shoulder. The force of the hug had knocked Lena onto her back, but she didn’t bother trying to get up.

It felt so good to have Kara in her arms, the piercing pain in her entire body forgotten for a few moments. They only let each other go when Ammarah cleared her throat. “We need to go before the police get here,” she instructed.

Kara sat up, helping Lena sit up as well. “How did you find us?” Lena couldn’t help but ask, feeling like it was a mirical that her 2 officers were there to save them. “Your police call. One of our paid off cops told us a woman had called in Emerald Dragon territory, right around the same area you went missing. We’d already searched most of the city when we heard, so the only logical thought was it was you.”

Lena could have sworn she could kiss Ammarah and Finn right then and there. She reframed, however, knowing that they needed to get out of the area. Everyone stood, Finn handing Kara a fresh gun. “The team got most of them, but there might be a few hiding,” he explained.

Luckily the Immortals had been thorough, not a single Emerald Dragon left alive. They quickly went down the weirdly designed apartments, down to the streets where at least 5 black SUV’s waited them. Kara took Lena into the middle one, demanding that they be taken to the hospital.

Both of them were in desperate need of medical attention. Lena’s shoulders were killing her, and she could tell a few organs had been bruised in her beating from Li Yang. She relaxed into her seat, grateful to feel the warmth of Kara’s body heat radiating against her.

**********

Lena laid perfectly still inside the CT machine. She’s already gotten multiple MRI’s and X-ray’s, having been at the hospital well into the morning. By now the sun had risen, and the testing they had been doing on Lena ever since she got there was coming to an end.

After a while they finally pulled Lena out of the machine, allowing her to slowly sit up. They already knew that she had multiple bruised organs, and a few small fractures along her ribs, jaw, and right arm. She’d gotten over 100 stitches from all the lacerations, including on her arm when she cut it jumping out the window. 

The entire time Lena had been there, she hadn’t seen Kara. They had been separated after they got to the hospital, and Lena had been asking for Kara non-stop. Now wasn’t any exception. “Can I see my friend now?” She asked bluntly to the doctor, who frowned.

“She’s still being worked on, ma’am,” He replied, knowing that wasn’t the answer Lena wanted. Her patience quickly ran out, quickly turning into anger. “I need to know she’s okay,” Lena barked out, giving the doctor one of her coldest stares.

At first the doctor held his ground, but quickly crumbled under the piercing gaze. “Okay, fine. I’ll bring you to her; _after_ you go talk to your visitors.” Lena furrowed her eyebrows. Visitors? Who had come to see Lena already? At first her mind jumped to the Emerald Dragons, but she knew they weren’t going to attack her twice in a row.

Lena allowed the doctor to help her into a wheelchair, getting taken out of the CT room and to the private waiting area where her unknown visitors were. As soon as Lena was rounded around the corner, she started to tell the doctor to take her back.

Lillian stood from the plush couch she had been sitting on, a look of worry on her face. “Oh my god, you’re alive! Are you okay? Can you stand?” Lena frowned, the low buzz of hatred she always felt when her mother was around starting to rear its head.

“I’m fine, just a little banged up.” Lena didn’t give any details, not wanting to speak in length to her mother. Lillian didn’t seem to notice the short explanation, rambling on in her own little world. “Who knew James was capable of such a thing! To sell out his own friend… When I realized you were missing I thought it was just him that abducted you, but when we heard that you called the police I put the pieces together straight away.”

Lena blankly stared at her mother. There was nothing she wanted to say, so she stayed silent. Lillian continued to spew words of false worry for her daughter, trying to act like a caring mother in front of the doctor. Lena let her talk for another minute or two before turning to the silent man behind her.

“Can you take me to see Kara now?” She asked in a dull voice, trying to keep her frustration hidden. Before the doctor could reply Lillian was talking over him. “Kara? Why would you want to see Kara; this is all her fault after all. That woman’s failed too many times at her job. I should honestly fire her-“

That was it. That was the statement that set Lena’s mind. For years she had always wondered if she couldn’t take Lillian down; to turn her own empire against her, and get her put in prison for the terrible thing she did. Now, listening to Lillian trash talk Kara, Lena knew that she would stop at nothing until her mother was completely ruined.

“You can stop right there,” Lena said in a bold voice. She felt too small, sitting in the wheelchair while Lillian stood taller than her. Lena rose up, her green ice blazing with anger. “’that woman’ has saved my life more times than I can count; today alone. She has been shot at, stabbed at, beaten, and whipped all for me. She’s not ‘failing at her job’, she’s doing exactly what you hired her to do; protect me!”

Lillian stared at Lena in shock and surprise, but Lena wasn’t done. “ _I’m_ the one who has the power to hire and fire anyone who works for me, not you. If I hear you threaten my people one more time I’ll make you regret even thinking about challenging me.”

It took everything in Lena not to strike her mother, her bruised and cut up fists clenching. “Now- if you’ll kindly fuck off –I’m going to see the woman who’s protected me better than you ever have.” Lena didn’t even sit back down in the wheelchair, making a point to walk around the doctor and away from her mother.

At first she was just walking in a general direction, but the doctor quickly caught up to her- not even bothering to take the chair with him –leading her to the elevator. They took it up a few stories before stepping out into what looked like a trauma center. It was very busy, with rows of beds line with currents full of people with bandaged wounds or casts.

The doctor lead Lena past all the open view beds, into a more private room. Instantly the smell of blood hit Lena’s nose, reminding her of how it smelt down in the basement of the apartments. Lying face down on a flat bed was Kara, her back exposed with two doctors working on it, a third working on her burned leg from the cattle prod James used.

Now being able to fully see the grizzly sight of Kara’s lacerated back and burned flesh made Lena freeze, staring with wide eyes. A tsunami of guilt overwhelmed Lena as she stared, her mouth hanging slightly ajar in shock. 

When she saw Kara wince at a particularly painful prod of the suturing needle as they stitched up her back is what got Lena moving. She grabbed a spare rolling stool, wheeling it over to the top of the bed, right in front of Kara.

Kara looked up when she noticed the movement, looking surprised up at Lena. Her wounds weren’t nearly as bad as Kara’s- the only noticeable injury a deep purple bruise along her jaw and cheek –but seeing the stitched up laceration across Kara’s cheek made Lena gently reach out and brush a thumb under the yet-to-be-bandaged wound. Kara didn’t flinch away.

“Are you okay?” She asked, her concerned blue eyes searching all over Lena’s face. “I will be as soon as I know you’re not in pain anymore,” Lena whispered. She hadn’t removed her hand from Kara’s cheek, instead placing her other hand on the other side of Kara’s face.

She brought her head down so that her forehead pressed gently against Kara’s. “I’m so sorry you have to go through this because of me… And I’m so sorry for being so cold to you for so long. I’m not upset at you- I never was after our fight –but I just couldn’t-“

“I know,” Kara interrupted in an equally quiet voice. “I’m not upset with you either… I know why you did what you did… And please don’t apologize for this; it’s not your fault for being born into your family.” Lena had never hated the name ‘Luthor’ as much as she did now. It’s brought so much pain to so many people, and she wish she could take it all away.

The two women were silent for a long moment, Lena watching the doctors and nurses work on cleaning and fixing Kara’s wounds. When she asked the doctor exactly what was wrong with her- and how long it’d take her to heal –she was relieved to know nothing was life threatening; it was all superficial, and would heal within the month.

“How are you even still standing?” Kara asked when Lena had briefly left the room to take a phone call from work, quickly telling them that she was busy and to call back tomorrow. “The pain meds they gave me work wonders,” Lena said with a chuckle, joy filling her heart when Kara started to chuckle with her.

It took another 2 hours for the hospital workers to clean up Kara. During that time Lena got a text from her mother;

_’If you insist on keeping this body guard, then tell her to increase her security around you. She’ll be live-in from now on, so you have a 24/7 watch.’_

Lena kept quiet about the new instructions until after she got all of Kara’s aftercare instructions- and vice versa for Kara getting Lena’s information –waiting until they got into the back of their SUV detail. “My mother’s instructed you to baby sit me over night from now on… Which starts with a nap at my place, then we can pack some of your things up to move into my guest bedroom.”

Kara looked grateful at the mention of a nap, quietly nodding. This entire ride she had been sitting with her knee ever so slightly touching Lena’s- her back arched oddly off of the seat –the pressure slightly increasing at the news that she’d now be living with Lena.

A rush of joy over the positive- if not exhausted –reaction from Kara filled Lena’s chest. She silently hoped that things would go well, and return to normal. For now, however, all she really wanted to do was make sure Kara was comfortable in bed before taking a long nap in her own.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Special thanks to Human_141213 for their great suggestions in the commnets, it really inspired me! Now I have a little more to work with, rather than making up _everything_ chapter to chapter.  
> I hope everyone has a happy New Year, and that we all stay safe.
> 
> Here's to 2021,  
> -Aries


	9. Chapter 9: The Confession

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> While Kara and Lena work from home, trying to heal mentally and physically, they both share a mutual confession.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope everyone's 2021 is going well! I keep making 2020 jokes, then realizing they're outdated now, lmao.  
> Anyways, please enjoy this chapter! Next one will be in Lena's POV.
> 
> Thank you for all the love <3  
> -Aries

Kara looked around the apartment as Lena closed the door behind them. The last time she was here was 4 months ago, when her and Lena had gotten into their knock-out drag-out fight. It wasn’t a happy memory, Kara feeling that familiar embarrassment and regret filling her chest. She was ashamed of how she acted- how she blamed things on Lena that wasn’t even were fault –and even though Lena told her that she was forgiven, she still felt bad.

“Can I get you anything to drink?” Lena offered, walking into Kara’s peripheral. She wasn’t limping like she was back in the apartment building, Kara silently thanking the inventor of strong pain medication. She hated seeing Lena in pain, feeling like she had failed in her job at keeping her safe and healthy.

Lena raised her eyebrow silently, Kara realizing that she had been staring at her for a little too long. “Oh, uh… I’m okay, thank you.” Kara felt a little awkward having to basically move into Lena’s apartment, feeling like she was intruding.

She was glad, however, being around Lena again. The real Lena, not just the woman who was her boss. Her presence was so much warmer, filling Kara’s heart with a special kind of joy knowing someone she cared for was close to her again. It was like being able to see a beloved family member after not seeing them for a long time.

Lena studied Kara’s face for a moment, obviously able to tell how awkward and stiff she felt. “Let me show you to your room then. You can lay down if you’d like. Get some rest.” Kara was silently grateful that Lena understood what she needed without her having to say it.

Kara nodded with a small grin of approval. Lena gently grabbed Kara’s hand, loosely holding it to avoid hurting her bruised knuckles. The contact sent butterflies through Kara’s stomach, staring down at their connected hands as she allowed Lena to lead her up the stairs and into the hallway- that Kara wouldn’t consider it a hallway; it was more of a narrow, long balcony that had a bunch of doors all on the left side.

They walked into the guest bedroom, casually decorated with some furniture and interpretive paintings. It was cozy, but had clearly been untouched for a very long time. “I’ll, uh… Get someone to clean it up before you move your stuff in,” Lena mumbled, realizing how dusty had really was.

Kara was honestly too tired to care about the state of the room. As long as she was able to lay down on something soft and comfortable, she didn’t mind. “It’s okay, I don’t mind,” Kara scoffed, looking around the room.

“Are you sure? You can take my bed for the night if you’d like-“ Kara could tell Lena was just as anxious as her about staying together in the same apartment. She tightened her hand, squeezing Lena’s gently. The sensation made Lena pause, realizing she had been rambling.

“Trust me, I’ve slept in places much worse… I just want to sleep in a bed, that’s all.” Lena didn’t look entirely convinced, but eventually she let her hand slip from Kara’s. “Okay, well if you think you’ll be okay… I’ll be just down the hall. I’m going to wash up- I hate the smell that clings to you after you’ve been in the hospital.”

Kara had to agree, the medical smell just made her think of sick and injured people. For a moment Kara wondered if she should also take a shower, but the thought of having the water hitting her injured back made her cringe. Kara nodded, watching Lena turn and start to walk out of the house.

“Oh, and Lena?” Kara called out, Lena pausing and looking back at her, humming in acknowledgment. “Thank you… For everything.” Kara wanted to talk about some things that had been said the night before, when they were down in the basement. For now, however, it could wait.

Lena smiled sweetly at the kind words, her eyes literally sparkling with what Kara now realized was probably affection. She finally left the room, closing the door gently behind her. Despite the bed calling her name, Kara didn’t go straight to sleep. Instead she pulled out her phone- which Finn had given her back at the hospital, mentioning they had found her stuff while they were raiding the apartments.

Within the past 12 hours Kara had thought she was going to die more times than she could count. She’d been so scared of not just losing her own life, but her loved one’s lives as well. During the time she had spent in the basement- staring at Lena’s unconscious body in the chair next to her –her mind kept wandering back to her mother and sister.

When she thought she was going to die, she couldn’t help but feel happy that she got to see them one last time. Now, however, she could accept the fact that she could see them and talk to them again. It was a huge relief, but the knowledge somehow felt surreal. As if it wasn’t entirely real- like a dream.

Kara dialed her mother’s number, moving to sit down on the edge of the bed. The phone rang a few times before Eliza’s cheerful voice called through the phone, “Kara! I’m so glad you called, I was just thinking of you.”

The sound of her mother’s voice was so sweet and relieving that Kara couldn’t help but break down into tears right then and there. “Yeah? What were you thinking about?” Kara asked, trying to not sound like she was sobbing. Her tears were burning hot against her cheeks, and it kind of stung against the stitches on her face.

Eliza was able to hear the crying in Kara’s voice straight away, switching from cheerful to concerned. “Is everything okay?! Did you and Lena get into another fight?” Kara had called her mother the night she and Lena fought about their friendship, and for a moment Kara wished that was the reason she was calling; it would have been so much simpler to explain.

“No, no… We’re okay… We actually made up last night. I just…” She couldn’t go into specifics. Her mother would have a heart attack if she knew what Kara had just gone through and done. “I just got a little hurt at work, is all… I remember whenever I got a cut or something you’d always kiss it. I could really use one of those kisses right now.”

There was a palpable pause where Kara could tell her mother was trying to decide if she should ask details about how hurt Kara was. Instead, however, she decided that now wasn’t the time. “Well, I know I can’t exactly give you a kiss, but how about this; I love you with all my heart. You make my world a better place, and I’m so glad I can call you my daughter. I know things have been tough, and I understand if you don’t want to talk about exactly why you’re calling, but just know that I’m incredibly proud of you.”

Kara chuckled through her tears, sniffling as she gently wiped at her cheeks. “I’m so glad you and Lena could make up again… I know you really care for her, even if you haven’t been able to put those feelings into words. Give her some love for me, yeah?” Kara smiled, agreeing to Eliza’s request as she moved to lay down on the bed, putting the phone on speaker so she could rest her head against the pillows.

“Could you just talk for a little bit longer?... I’ve missed your voice.” Kara felt her exhausted body finally relax after hours of pain and misery. It felt good listening to her mother casually ramble about the most recent episode of her favorite TV show.

Kara slowly started to fall asleep listening to her mother, a soft smile on her face. She was on the edge of falling into a deep sleep, vaguely registering Eliza’s, “Sleep well, my brave baby girl… I love you,” before she hung up.

**********

Kara watched Lena typing away on her laptop silently. She had opted to start working from home, saying how she didn’t want to risk Kara’s healing process by going out into the potentially dangerous public. Kara was secretly grateful that she didn’t have to actually work while she was injured, although she felt bad that Lena had to change her schedule to accommodate her.

Kara had been laying across the couch on her stomach, watching the TV on a low volume. It was like a stay-at-home vacation, except she wasn’t at her home. Lena opened up her apartment completely, doing well in making Kara feel comfortable in such an unknown setting.

It’s been 3 days since they escaped from the Emerald Dragons, and things were struggling to return straight back to normal. While Kara and Lena were already making up for the lost time- when they had been basically ignoring one another –it was obvious that both of them had been mentally and physically scarred by the happenings of the days before.

Lena seemed to be having nightmares that caused her to wake up screaming. For the past 2 nights Kara rushed into her room- she had a gun in her hand the first time, thinking it was an intruder –grabbing Lena before she hurt herself while she flailed around.

Whenever Kara tried asking what she could do to help Lena, her boss just brushed her off, saying, “I’ll be okay… I just need a minute. Maybe thinking of happier things will help.” Kara knew from experience that daydreaming about home, or someone who felt like home, didn’t work.

She wanted to help Lena so bad, but felt like that would just cause Lena to lash out like a scared animal. Kara remembered the first time she faced something traumatic; she wasn’t even in the Special Forces yet, still working through the boot camp. Someone’s weapon had a mechanical malfunction that caused it to devastatingly blow up in their hand. There was so much blood…

When she had nightmares about it that night, someone had tried to help her. She got so unnecessarily angry at them, feeling like they were calling her weak by having nightmares. She later realized her error, but her relationship with the other soldier was permanently damaged.

So, all Kara could think of doing was wait till Lena came to her. She needed to accept she needed help before Kara could even give her the help. Still, it was hard watching Lena; being able to see how exhausted she was because she couldn’t sleep. She just wanted to hold her and tell her that it was going to be alright.

Kara herself was having some trouble sleeping. She’d often times dream of what would have happened if the Immortals hadn’t gotten there in time… Or, if they weren’t even able to get out of the basement at all. She’d be gone, and Lena would have had to deal with all that pain and misery on her own.

It felt odd being grateful that she had also been captured. Like some sort of psychological self-harm… But Kara knew from even more experience that when someone goes through something as traumatic as being abducted and tortured it makes someone feel like no one understands their pain. At least Lena doesn’t have to feel that hopelessness.

So, here they were now; Lena working and Kara pretending she was watching the TV. In reality she was studying the bruise on her cheek. The swelling around her jaw had gone down considerably, but there was still a deep purple mark on her face. It didn’t detract from her beauty, but it made Kara frown.

She watched Lena’s bright green eyes scan across her laptop screen, but as soon as they started to lift up in her direction Kara looked back at the TV. She knew before she even heard Lena’s almost silent snort that she’d gotten caught staring, her cheeks starting to burn in embarrassment.

“How are you feeling?” Lena asked sweetly, shifting to move her laptop off her lap. Kara looked back at her, unable to stop the small grin from spreading across her face as she looked into Lena’s sparkling eyes. “I’m alright… The stitches are itchy, if I’m being honest, though.”

Lena’s eyes shifted away from Kara’s face, to her back. She frowned ever so slightly, seemingly remembering the ugly truth underneath Kara’s shirt. “Have you been able to clean them?” Lena tilted her head slightly, looking back up at Kara’s face.

“Uh… Sorta?” Kara knew she was supposed to clean the wounds multiple times a day, but trying to reach around to clean her back was too painful, so she just opted for just pouring warm, soapy water gently over the wounds while sitting in the bathtub, hoping that she reached all of the wounds well enough.

Lena’s slight frown deepened, her eyes narrowing. “What is up with you and not caring about your injured body?” Lena asked with an irritated twist to her voice. Kara felt like she was being scolded by a parent, shrinking a little into the couch.

“Because I’m a big baby when it comes to pain?” Maybe humor would avoid Lena from releasing her full disappointment onto Kara. They silently looked at one another, Kara about to break and say something when suddenly Lena stood.

She wordlessly walked away, trotting up the stairs and to the last room on the cat walk- her room. She was gone for only a few minutes, Kara able to hear the water to her bath tub running. She had just started to stand up and investigate what Lena was doing when suddenly she reappeared again.

“Come up here,” She said in an authoritative voice, Kara’s stomach fluttering at the tone. If she hadn’t known better she would have admitted how much the sound of Lena telling her what to do turned her on… Which was not something she needed to be thinking about at the moment.

Quickly Kara hurried up to Lena, who watched her with those alluring green eyes. Kara gave her a questioning look when she reached her, but Lena didn’t elaborate on her plans, simply turning around and walking back into her room.

Kara silently followed her through the bedroom and into the attached bathroom, realizing that she had in fact heard the bath running. “What are you doing?” Kara finally asked, looking from the bath to Lena, who crossed her arm and popped out her hip.

“Get undressed; I’m going to help you wash your back and change your bandages.” Kara felt her face explode in a deep blush that spread down her neck and across her chest. “Uh- no?!” Kara tried to back out of the bathroom, but Lena moved faster than her, wrapping an arm around her waist.

Kara froze, allowing Lena to pull her back into the bathroom, closing the door with her foot. “I swear to god, Kara, you’re getting in the damn bath… Do you want your stitches to get infected?! I promise I won’t look at you undress; I’ll turn around until you’re ready or something.”

Kara stared down at Lena for a long moment, her mind focused on so many things; the intense look in Lena’s beautiful green eyes, the arm that was wrapped firmly yet gently around her, the fact that she could feel her own heart thundering in her chest.

“Okay… Fine… I’ll take a bath.” Lena’s face relaxed, and she slowly let Kara go. “Thank you. Just call me back in when you’re in the tub,” Lena replied in a thankful voice. She stepped out of the bathroom, firmly closing the door behind her.

Kara carefully removed her clothing, hissing through her teeth as she struggled to pull her shirt off. Most of her wounds were located around her torso, making it uncomfortable to wear any sort of clothing. Once everything was removed from Kara’s body, she pulled her hair up and stepped into the hot, shallow water.

She had bandages wrapped all around her back and torso, but the water was low enough that they didn’t soak into the dressing. Kara had tried to remove some of it, but realized it was all tied around to her back, where she couldn’t reach. It was a miracle that she was able to even get them off the first time she cleaned her wounds. She figured Lena would be able to help her.

She slowly sat down with her back to the door, pulling her knees up to her chest. Kara hugged her legs close, trying to hide herself as she called for Lena to come back into the bathroom. Lena opened the door, but paused when her eyes landed on Kara’s back.

Kara had yet to look at how truly awful her wounds were, knowing just by the pain that she probably didn’t look too good. Lena freezing as she looked at the healing gashes and cuts solidified that she probably looked like she was put through a meat grinder.

After a few seconds Lena finally started to move again. Kara didn’t watch her, just listening to her shuffling around as she grabbed all the items needed to clean Kara’s injuries. Once everything was gathered and put to the side, Lena rolled up her pant legs and moved to step into the water.

Kara was just about to question what she was doing, but when she looked back she saw Lena sitting down on the edge of the tub, her feet in the water. Her own hair had been pulled into a messy bun, a few strands hanging down into her face.

“Are you okay?” Lena checked, a look of worry on her face. Kara gently smiled and nodded, knowing that she could trust her best friend. First she started with removing all the ace bandages, gauze, and everything else that stuck to the scabs. 

She was incredibly gentle, and allowed Kara to remove anything that was on the front of her torso, looking away as Kara lowered her legs to see. Lena then to grab a clean wash cloth. She got it wet under the tub faucet, slowly wringing the water along the top of Kara’s shoulders.

Kara couldn’t help but flex at the sensation, slightly arching her back and squeezing her eyes closed. It was setting off her fight or flight, making her want to jump out of the tub and run away from the tickling pain.

Lena paused, leaning into Kara’s peripheral to catch her attention. Kara looked back at her, still keeping her arms around her knees. “Is this okay?” Lena asked softly, the worry returning to her face. “I’ll be okay. Keep going; I’ve just got to get used to the water, I think.”

“Just let me know if you need me to stop,” Lena said in almost a whisper, moving to replenish the washcloth with more warm water. She repeated the trickling effect a few more times before she started to gently pat the dripping wet cloth directly against Kara’s back.

Again, Kara flexed and instinctively shied away from the touch, hissing through her teeth. It didn’t hurt as badly as she thought it would, but the discomfort made her legs itch. “Can you talk? Or do something to distract me?” Kara asked after Lena re-wet the cloth.

Lena paused to think of a way to distract Kara, her head tilting slightly. “Do you know what I thought of you when I first met you?” She asked softly, gently dabbing the cloth. Kara squeezed her eyes closed, humming in acknowledgment that she was listening.

“I thought, ‘damn… She’s going to be really hard to focus around!’… I thought that you’re probably the most beautiful person I’ve ever seen. You intimidated the hell out of me, but when I realized that you’re really just a big teddy bear it wasn’t so scary trying to get to know you.” Kara could hear Lena’s gentle smile in her voice, not even having to turn around to see it.

“What made you think I’m a big teddy bear?” Kara asked out of curiosity, listening to Lena re-wet the cloth again. “When I smiled at you, you smiled back.” Really? That’s what made Lena feel comfortable around her?... How could Kara not smile back? Getting to see Lena genuinely smile was so contagious, Kara couldn’t help it.

Lena dabbed her back a little bit more, Kara trying to picture the first time she saw Lena properly smile at her. Was it in Rome? While they were looking over the city? That was probably her most memorable moment of joy that Kara vividly remembered.

“Well… I thought you were very beautiful when I first saw you… But I didn’t get to form a full opinion of you until we left for Rome.” Kara glanced back, seeing that Lena was watching her intently. “Then I realized that you were a completely different- better –person when you feel like you can actually relax around someone.”

Lena didn’t say anything for a while. Eventually she offered Kara the wet cloth, gently changing the subject. “Wash the rest of your cuts, please.” Kara did as she was asked, letting go of her legs, sitting a little straighter to she could dab at the wounds. “You know,” Lena continued talking softly, “We never did talk like you mentioned the other day.”

That’s right; Kara had said she wanted to talk to Lena about something the day they got home. She had just completely forgotten, too busy with moving into Lena’s apartment, and trying to adjust to this very sudden change in their lives. “Later… When I’m not naked,” Kara replied with a chuckle at the end. Lena sighed, but laughed along with her.

“I’m going to keep bothering you till you tell me what’s on your mind. You know that, right?” Kara scoffed, smirking back at Lena. “I know, and I promise I’m not just avoiding the topic. I just don’t want to have a serious conversation in a bathtub.”

Lena let the subject die, trusting Kara to keep her word. They again went silent as Kara finished up washing the dried blood around her wounds. Once the cloth was given back to Lena, she moved to grab what looked like a gentle soap cleanser, draining the tub a little so the water didn’t get too high on Kara’s back.

She assessed how to best wash the stitched up wounds, deciding to squirt some of the foamy soap onto the wet cloth and very very gently dab it onto Kara’s skin. Again Kara winced at the sensation of something touching her back. The soap felt bubbly, like it was fizzing against her skin.

Kara involuntarily hissed through her teeth, unsure if it was the soap that was slightly burning, or just her skin heating up. Suddenly Lena leaned forward and started to gently blow where she dabbed fresh soap. There was a cooling sensation that spread across Kara’s back wherever Lena blew, instantly relaxing her as she gave a heavy sigh.

“I’m sorry this hurts… Just give me a few more minutes, okay?” Lena whispered, pausing at what she was doing. Kara silently nodded, knowing that she wasn’t trying to hurt her purposefully. “Okay. I trust you.”

She didn’t realize Lena was leaning so far forward until she felt her lips press gently on the skin right behind her ear. A whisper of tingling pleasure brushed across the area Lena kissed, Kara gasping softly. Without thinking she tilted her head to the side, her eyes fluttering closed.

Lena paused while pulling away, noticing the movement. “Does that help?” Kara didn’t stop herself from nodding, breathily whispering, “Yeah…” Lena took a second to gently wipe soap onto another part of her back, but just before the slight burning sensation got too bad, she leaned forward and pressed a kiss just a little lower from where she first kissed.

The sensation made Kara completely forget about her pain, sighing happily. Lena’s lips were even softer than she imagined, loving how they felt against her skin. Lena repeated this; rubbing soap onto her skin and then distracting her with a kiss or two.

Kara didn’t even realize she was leaning back towards Lena, her arms relaxing around her legs. Lena started to move her free hand, first against Kara’s left shoulder before slowly sliding it up her neck.

Lena’s long fingers splayed across the side of Kara’s neck and the bottom of her jaw. Her thumb gently started to rub where her jaw and neck met, sending shivers down Kara’s spine.

Kara felt like she was in blissful heaven, breathing slow, calm breathes as she focused on the sensation of Lena’s hand and lips. She didn’t even realize that Lena had finished rubbing the foaming soap against her back until she heard the water faucet running again.

She opened her eyes, glancing over to see that even though Lena was still just gently kissing the top of Kara’s shoulder and along her neck, she was blindly reaching over and washing the slightly bloody washcloth.

Kara couldn’t help but snort in amusement, turning her head up and to the side to look at Lena. “Do you need to watch what you’re doing?” She asked softly, her nose brushing Lena’s cheek. Her eyes were closed, staying respectful and not at Kara’s body over her shoulder. Kara silently wondered what would happen if she _did_ open her eyes.

“You seemed to be really enjoying the distraction, so I didn’t want to ruin that for you,” Lena said in a quiet voice, pulling back slightly so she could look Kara in the face. “Oh… Thank you. For the distraction, that is… And not pulling away.” Lena smiled sweetly at her, nodding.

“Let me wash this soap off, then put some ointment on your back,” She said, turning off the water to gently squeeze the wash cloth over Kara’s entire torso. The water tickled, and made Kara twitch each time it touched her skin, but it didn’t sting or hurt.

As Lena washed the soap off, Kara thought about what she had been wanting to talk about for the past few days. She was really nervous, not sure how the conversation was going to go. Either Lena was going to understand her thought process and agree, or she was going to get angry all over again and they’d have to return back to how they had been for the past few months.

Lena set down the wash cloth, grabbing a clean one to gently dab the wounds dry before swabbing some Vaseline onto each gash and cut. This part didn’t hurt, Lena making sure to be extra gentle around the more painful areas.

Kara drained the water for Lena, taking the Vaseline from her so she could also apply it to some of her other gashes. She also put a little on her legs and cheek, having been able to wash them properly earlier that day due to their easy access.

Once both women were content with the wound care, Lena got out the dressings. She put a healthy amount of gauze on all of the wounds, making sure nothing was uncovered before she grabbed the mesh wrapping.

Lena started her left shoulder, wrapping it around her torso, Kara grabbed it from her to properly wrap her front, handing it back on the left side of her. They did this for a while; handing the wrapping back and forth so everything was held properly in place.

Lastly Lena covered the mesh and gauze with an ace bandage, repeating the same process all over again. Kara also wrapped a part of her leg that had been cut pretty badly from a knife, dressing it just like her torso.

Finally, they were done, so Lena stood and stepped out of the tub. “Do you need help getting dressed?” Lena asked softly, glancing to the baggy clothes that Kara had been wearing earlier. Kara looked back to Lena, still keeping her back towards her.

“Uh… Could you help me put my bra on? That’s the hardest part, then I can get the rest.” Kara could tell her face was bright red just by how hot she felt. To her comfort, Lena also started to blush, looking at the pile of clothing again. “Oh. Okay. Yeah. Sure.”

She awkwardly grabbed the plain black bra, the blush that was spreading across her face also spreading to her ears, neck, and chest. Lena visibly swallowed, and Kara almost laughed at how awkward this situation was.

Blindly, making sure to keep her eyes looking away, Lena wrapped the bra around Kara’s front. Kara put her arms through, clearing her throat in a tick of anxiety. She adjusted it before letting Lena know she could clasp it around the back.

Kara felt the band tighten for just a moment before relaxing into a more comfortable pressure. “Okay, there you go… Anything else?” Kara shook her head, quietly thanking Lena as she walked out. Once Kara was completely alone she was able to dry off her legs a little better before slipping on her loose boxers, sweat pants, and t-shirt.

She pulled her hair out of its bun, attempting to straighten it and get the tangles out with her fingers, before giving up and just putting it into a ponytail. Lena didn’t care about uniform, and honestly neither did Kara at the moment.

Doing a double check around the bathroom, Kara was satisfied that she had all of her things. She left the room, strolling back to the catwalk. Lena was already back downstairs, standing in the kitchen. She looked to be starting a pot of coffee.

“Are you hungry? I have some stuff I can throw together.” Lena looked up at Kara, watching her carefully walk down the stairs. “Do you even know how to cook?” Kara asked as she got to the bottom of the stairs, walking to the bar top that separated the kitchen from the living room, leaning against it.

Lena gave a weirdly bashful smile, glancing down to where her hands rested on the counter. “Uh… I know how to boil water and- in theory –add stuff to it?” Kara couldn’t have stopped herself from laughing even if she wanted to.

She burst into giggles, beaming wide as she looked to Lena, who couldn’t help but also laugh with her. It felt amazing to laugh with Lena. The word ‘heavenly’ came to Kara’s mind as she listened to Lena’s beautiful voice giggling.

They were able to get themselves under control after a few seconds, both of their cheeks red from laughter instead of being flustered now. The good feeling in Kara’s chest reminded her of what she wanted to talk to Lena about.

“I can help you cook if you’d, but uhm… Can we talk first?” Kara anxiously tapped one of her good knuckles against the counter. All amusement had left her body, filled with worry and slight fear over what she needed to talk about.

Lena seemed to sense the shift in Kara’s demeanor, a slight downturn to her lips. “Yeah, of course… What’s wrong?” She took a step closer, leaning the side of her hip against the counter. Kara stayed looking at a random point on the counter in front of her, unsure if she could say anything while she looked Lena in the face.

“When we were at the apartments… On the rooftop… You said something.” Now Kara had to look up, seeing the remembrance crossing Lena’s face. Her eyes drifted in away from Kara, unfocused for a moment as her lips pursed.

“I did say something, yeah… I didn’t know if you could hear it, or even process it, really. A lot happened that night.” Her eyes drifted down to Kara’s hands, a slightly disappointed look on her face. “I did mean it, though. I should have told you how I felt long ago.”

Lena looked somber, like she was already prepared for disappointment. Kara shifted stiffly, frowning at the almost sad look on her face. “I’ve asked you this before, but I think the answers has changed, so… What do you think of me? Of our relationship?”

There was a long pause, as if Lena didn’t want to say her thoughts out loud. Eventually, though, she managed to speak in a quiet voice. “I like you… A lot. More than just a friend. More than a body guard. I have feelings for you, and I’ve had them for a long time. I wanted to- I hoped to –just let them run their course and die out, but… It’s been months now and I just think they’re getting stronger.”

Kara watched as Lena refused to look her in the face, emerald green eyes dancing all around the room. She noticed the distance between them, and felt like she needed to close it a little bit. Lena looked as if she felt completely alone in this world, yet she wasn’t. Kara was there with her, sharing how she felt.

She stepped away from where she was leaning, slowly moving over so she was only a foot or so away from Lena. She leaned against the counter on her hand, head tilting as she studied Lena’s face. Lena looked to her finally, eyebrows furrowing in confusion.

Kara didn’t want to come right out and say what was on the tip of her tongue. It scared her, honestly; what she felt for Lena. So, she reached forward with her other hand and grabbed Lena’s, pulling her so they were now hugging, Kara’s arms resting on her shoulders. Lena instinctively wrapped her arms around Kara’s waste, careful not to hit her in any tender places.

They stood like that, in complete silence, until Kara felt Lena completely relax against her. She wanted Lena to feel safe and comfortable in her arms. Kara pressed her nose into the side of Lena’s head, breathing in that all too familiar scent of vanilla and berries.

“I like you, too… Ever since Colorado, with my mom… But I just didn’t know if I was able to tell you, and my feelings scared me- they still do, kind of -so I ran… I didn’t want to confront how attached to you I am. How badly I want you to be mine,” Kara whispered softly. She felt Lena’s arms tighten gently around her.

“There’s a but at the end of that sentence, isn’t there?” Lena whispered back. Kara frowned, nodding as a painful feeling of disappointment and sadness filled her chest. “But… I don’t know if you can ever be mine… Not with how dangerous our relationship could be. If your mother found out, then that’d put not just us in danger, but the others in our lives.”

“But what if she never found out?... What if we didn’t tell anyone?” Her fingers had been dancing softly against Kara’s lower back, the feeling oddly comforting. Lena gave Kara time to think about her words, staying silent as they ever so slightly swayed together.

What if they kept their relationship a secret? They were already doing that now, with just their friendship. Kara’s mind jumped back to when Lillian had brought up knowing where they had been during Christmas. The fear in her heart was unforgettable, realizing that her family was in danger.

But at the same time, they weren’t in danger; Lena had expertly thrown her mother off of the trail. If they were more careful- covered their tracks better and kept to an even stricter ‘not at work’ rule –then it could possibly work out.

“Are you willing to do something like that? Have the weight of such a big secret on your shoulders? We’d have to have self-control around everyone, and even when we thought we were alone, we’d have to stay away from each other… Do you really want to start a relationship like that?” Kara pulled away slightly so she could see Lena.

Lena had a resilient look on her face. It looked as if she was ready to fight the whole world just so they could be together. It put Kara’s mind almost at complete ease, realizing that Lena wanted this just as badly as she did, even with all the obstacles in the way.

“I know that I’m ready to stop ignoring us… Our connection. I’m prepared to do anything just so I can have you. I don’t care that we’d have to hide- I’ve been hiding all my life from my mother, worried that she’d find out that I like women. She doesn’t scare me, Kara. I know her kryptonite, and if she tries to go after you or your family, I’ll make sure to take her down first.” Lena’s green eyes shined with authority and power.

Lena was ready, prepared for what could happen if they slipped up and got caught. Kara could tell, though, that she wasn’t afraid. She was probably the strongest women in the world with how she was looking at Kara right now.

They held eye contact for a long time, staying silent for a few heart beats. “And what about you,” Lena asked, her look softening as she glanced around Kara’s face, “Are you willing to jump through all of these hoops so we can be together?”

She opened her mouth, just about to agree.

All of a sudden a phone went off. Both women jumped, Lena flinching backwards slightly. Kara looked all around the apartment, realizing that the phone that was ringing was hers.

Kara reluctantly stepped away from Lena’s comfortable warmth, storming over to her phone in the living room. She picked it up, realizing that it was Winn calling her. “Just… Give me a second, Lena,” Kara said with a frown before swiping to answer the call.

“Hey, Winn,” She answered, trying not to sound too irked at the poorly timed call. “Have you heard?! I’m sure you have, he’s your boss’ good friend; The police just released that James Olsen’s been murdered!” Winn’s excited voice practically yelled on the other end of the phone.

Kara frowned, glancing to Lena, who was actively not looking at her, trying to look busy with coffee. Kara knew she could probably hear what Winn was saying with how loud her was talking. “Uh, yeah, I heard a while ago.”

“A while ago? They just released the autopsy and obituary an hour ago- wait… Were you the one who killed him?!” Winn gasped, and Kara couldn’t help but face palm. 

“No, I’m not the one who killed him! Even if I was, I wouldn’t be able to tell you.”

“Oh, well then why did you know about his death before me?” Kara moved to lean her elbows against the bar top again, watching Lena as she poured 2 cups of coffee. She looked up to Lena, who met her gaze. Lena gave a small nod, as if giving her approval to talk about what happened.

Still, Kara didn’t want to explain too much. She knew it was a sensitive topic, so she stayed vague with her answer. 

“I was there,” She answered simply. 

“Oh, dang… Are you okay? Was your boss with you? I guess you can’t tell me what happened, huh? I know it had something to do with your boss’ rival mafia people.” Winn sounded shocked, and slightly worried.

“No, I can’t explain a whole lot, sorry. You’re right, though, it was something to do with the Emerald Dragons. We got caught up in all of the action, and got pretty banged up in the process.”

“You didn’t lose a limb or something did you?... You know, I haven’t seen you in a long time; maybe we could find some place to meet up and talk?”

Kara watched Lena make her a sugary cup of coffee, giving her a small smile as she handed over the still steaming beverage. “I’d love to see you, but unfortunately I’m working.”

“You mean you’re still working, even though you’re injured?! Does that woman not take a break? She’s still making you go to and from L-Corp?”

“No, we’re not at L-Corp. We’ve had to increase security on Ms. Luthor, so I’m currently watching over her in her apartment while we both take a break… Kind of. She’s working from home, basically.”

Lena watched Kara with soft eyes, listening to the conversation. Kara carefully blew on her coffee, taking a quick sip. It was still hot, but the sweet taste that spread across her tongue made Kara take another hasty sip.

“If you’d like to see your friend,” Lena said, loud enough for Winn to be able to hear, “Then he can come over. I know you’re probably tired of seeing my face constantly.” Kara raised her eyebrow, confused by the last sentence. After the conversation they were just having, Lena should know that was the last thing Kara thought.

The playful smile that spread across Lena’s made Kara realize that she was joking, making her scoff. “Oh, I didn’t realize she was right there,” Winn mumbled awkwardly, feeling like he got caught gossiping secrets.

“Yeah, the apartment kind of carries voices… But what do you say? Would you like to visit?” Kara was kind of excited at the idea of being able to see Winn again. They were both so busy that it was hard to make schedules meet. She’d text him regularly, but that wasn’t the same as face to face interaction.

There was a pause where Winn was noticeably thinking. “I mean; I’d love to see you again… And actually I was thinking that maybe I could do an interview with Ms. Luthor? About L-Corp, and her recent improvements to the company. Of course I understand if she doesn’t want to-“

“I’ve read your work, Mr. Scott. I enjoy your writing, and I have no problem answering some of your questions. I’ll have Ms. Danvers text you the address,” Lena spoke loudly again, Kara giving her a grateful smile.

“Well in that case, I’d love to go. I’m excited to see you again, Kara- oh, and thank you Ms. Luthor!” Winn excitedly buzzed, audibly moving around the room, probably grabbing some items to bring over. Kara and Winn said their good-byes, Kara texting him the address straight away.

After she put down her phone, she looked up to Lena, who was cleaning out the coffee pot in the sink. “So uhm… Before Winn called, we were talking,” She awkwardly switched topics. Everything felt much less serious now, like they were picking up at the wrong spot.

Lena looked up to Kara and gave her a soft smile. “You don’t have to answer me right now… Think about it. I can wait. I know this isn’t something we should jump into.” Kara didn’t really have to think about it. She was ready; she wanted Lena to know how much she wanted her.

But, at the same time she knew that they should think about this a little bit more. Just having one conversation, then jumping straight into a romantic relationship wasn’t a good idea. 

Kara decided she’d wait till at least tomorrow before she let herself answer Lena’s question. There was a lot to process, and a lot of mental rules that Kara would have to create for herself, so that they didn’t get caught.

For now, however, she could let herself feel the joy she’d been denying herself for so long, knowing that she wasn’t the only one who had such strong romantic feelings between the two of them.


	10. Chapter 10: Love Affair

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lena gets interviewed by Winn, still struggling with nightmares that only Kara seems to be able to calm.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm super excited for this chapter, I really hope everyone likes it.
> 
> Enjoy!  
> -Aries

Lena watched as Kara swept around the room, gathering all of her personal items that she had put around the apartment. She wasn’t exactly messy, she just had a habit of setting down things like her jackets, or sometimes leaving her shoes right by the door whenever she came into the apartment after grabbing the Doordash from downstairs.

“I don’t want Winn to notice that I’ve made myself comfortable here. I’ll just keep everything in my room till he leaves,” Kara said as she picked up her favorite coffee mug, washing it out before quickly- or as quickly as she could on her sore leg –trotting up the stairs to put her arm full of items away.

Lena couldn’t help but get caught up on her wording. ‘Made myself comfortable’… ‘My room’… It sent a flutter of happiness through her chest knowing that Kara was actually enjoying her stay here. It didn’t take her long to start referring to the once guest bedroom as her own room, and she was actually comfortable being around Lena. It was such a contrast to when they first met, when Kara wouldn’t even stop glancing around the room, and she almost always refused to sit down without a fight.

Kara had already grabbed most of her stuff, but she didn’t have the arm room to grab her laptop, so Lena gently took it off the coffee table, closing the screen so it would just go to sleep. She tucked it under her arm, slowly making it up the stairs. Her knee was starting to throb, but Lena wanted to avoid taking pills. There was already a long line of addiction in her family, and she didn’t want to fall into bad habits.

As Lena walked through Kara’s open door, she paused, noticing Kara was trying to take off her shirt, her formal suit laid out on the bed. The shirt had gotten snagged on the Velcro of one of the ace bandages, so her arms were pinned up above her head, her face covered.

“Do you need some help with that?” Lena asked, trying her best not to laugh aloud. It was adorable seeing a grown woman getting stuck in her shirt like a toddler, and it made Lena’s affection for Kara swell tenfold.

Kara snickered from under her shirt, obviously trying to hid her embarrassment. “Yeah, if you could just unstick my shirt… I didn’t want to pull the bandage off,” She admitted. Lena carefully set Kara’s laptop down on her large bed before strolling over.

She pulled off the Velcro from the shirt, and started to help Kara pull the fabric from over her head. Strands of fly-away hair fell out of Kara’s pony tail, giving her a frazzled, windswept look. She huffed a blond curl out of her face, turning to Lena with a large smile. “What would I do without you?” She asked goofily.

“Hm… Probably nothing, since you’d still be stuck in your shirt,” Lena replied with a chuckled. They smiled at one another for a moment before Lena pointed out the laptop, Kara thanking her as she left the room.

Lena decided that it would in fact be a good idea to get changed into a slightly more formal outfit. Currently she was just in pants and a button up blouse. Walking into her room, she stepped into the walk-in closet, glancing around the walls lined with tons of clothing.

After a few minutes she chose to switch her shirt for a silvery blue long sleeve blouse with a deep V-neck, the fabric crossing over in the front. She then slipped on some black pants and a small black belt with a silver accent. Lastly she slipped on some simple black heals before moving to her bathroom to do her make-up.

The ugly, deep purple bruise that made her jaw ache needed to be covered, as well as the cuts and bruises on Lena’s knuckles. She took her time working on putting layers of concealer and foundation to hide the blemish, constantly checking herself from all angles to make sure it didn’t look obvious what she was doing.

As Lena was starting on her eye make-up, Kara appeared in the doorway, knocking against the frame. Lena paused in applying her eyeshadow, focusing on the blue eyes that watched her. “Winn says he’s pulling up. I’m going down to meet him; we’ll only be a minute or two.”

Lena smiled at the polite warning, nodding her approval. “Take your time, I know you haven’t seen him in a while.” Kara smiled sweetly, but she didn’t move to leave right away. Her eyes flickered all across Lena’s body, a look that Lena couldn’t exactly figure out deep on her face.

“You look amazing, by the way.” Lena wasn’t sure if it was the compliment or the smirk that made her eyes widen slightly, and a deep blush set across her cheeks. Kara was already walking away, a soft chuckle echoing through Lena’s room.

Trying to not get too flustered, Lena returned to her make-up, her mind running back to the conversation they were having less than an hour ago. Lena knew she said she could wait for Kara’s answer, and she didn’t want to jump to conclusions, but seeing Kara flirt like that made Lena both assume that Kara was in fact ready to jump into a relationship, and impatient for the true answer to her question.

With a huff, Lena finished up her eye make-up, and was just finishing up her lip stick when she heard Kara’s voice returning, talking to someone. “I’ll go get Ms. Luthor, she’s just getting ready,” Kara’s voice carried through the apartment. ‘Ms. Luthor’… Lena hated when Kara called her that, but she knew it was necessary to avoid any informalities, even with the ones she trusted.

Lena was just about to walk out of her bathroom when Kara appeared in her bedroom doorway. Again her eyes flickered all over Lena, and it suddenly became obvious to her that Kara was _checking her out_. Another wave of butterflies hit Lena’s stomach as a rush of mental arousal spiked up through her. How long had she been doing this, and why was Lena so oblivious to it up until now?

“Winn Schott is here to see you now, Ms. Luthor,” Kara said, keeping a respectful distance outside of the room. Her voice snapped Lena back to reality, realizing that she had an interview to do. “Right… Thank you. After you,” Lena said, quickly pushing back her flustered emotions to follow Kara down the cat-walk.

Winn Schott was a very thin, relatively good looking man. He reminded Lena of a puppy more than anything, with a sort of innocent look in his eyes as he glanced around the room. It was obvious that he was nervous with the way he was messing with his messenger bag.

Lena bit back her pain as she tried to normally walk down the stairs, avoiding her desire to limp. She needed to put on a brave face, and show no weakness in front of this stranger. “Mr. Schott, how good to finally meet you.”

Winn took long strides over to Lena as she reached the bottom of the stairs, offering his hand out to her. Even though he was her friend, Kara watched him carefully, her eyes scanning his outstretched hand out of habit.

Lena shook his hand gently, silently hoping he didn’t look down and notice that she couldn’t hide her cuts and bruises very well on her knuckles. If he did notice, he did a good job of not showing it. “I’m very grateful that you agreed to do this interview with me, ma’am.” Winn gave her a nervous smile.

“Any friend of Ms. Danvers is a friend of mine… Shall we sit? I don’t mean to take up your time with your friend.” Lena gestured to the couches, leading the way to the living room. She sat down carefully, her knee throbbing from over-use. Winn sat across from Lena, but Kara stood off to the side.

Lena couldn’t help but motion with her eyes for Kara to sit in the chair she was standing a few feet away from, but she ever so slightly shook her head. Lena tried not to let out the frustrated sigh that caught in her chest, knowing that Kara wasn’t comfortable standing, but was too stubborn to do anything about it.

Eventually Lena knew she couldn’t fight Kara, so she decided to turn her attention to Winn. He was grabbing a recorder and a computer that Lena assumed he took notes on. “Now before we start, I’ll let you know how I tend to work; If you don’t like any of my questions, or don’t want to answer something, just let me know and I’ll move on… I’d also like to get this out of the way; Will you not be talking about the recent death of James Olsen?”

Winn glanced away from Lena, his dark green eyes landing on the carefully stitched up gash on Kara’s face. Lena frowned at the mark, a pang of guilt stabbing into her heart. “Because you’re a reporter I cannot answer any of your questions about my involvement in the death of James… But if you ask them as a friend of Kara Danvers, then I’ll answer some of them.”

A look of excitement about Lena’s consent to help satisfy his curiosity about the situation passed over Winn’s face. In the corner of Lena’s eye, she noticed Kara tense up in displeasure. “I know you can’t tell me exactly who killed James, but was it one of your uh… Workers?” Lena didn’t even get to open her mouth before Kara stepped in.

“Winn, really? I asked you to avoid questions like that.” She frowned protectively, her eyes narrowing at her friend. Winn started to shrink, but Lena quickly spoke. “It’s alright, he doesn’t mean anything rude by it… To answer your question, no; the Immortals weren’t the ones to kill James. It was a general of the Emerald Dragons.”

Winn glanced to Kara before asking his next question. “Did both of you get hurt during the attack?” Lena glanced down at her busted up hands. “Yes, although Kara got the brunt of it all… A target was put on her back after the Emerald Dragon’s first attack against me.”

“Okay- no… Winn, don’t ask any more questions about the Emerald Dragons… Ms. Luthor doesn’t need to be reliving that night.” Kara’s voice was aggressive, her eyes daring Winn to continue on with this line of questions. Winn quickly put his hands up defensively. 

“Alright, alright, I won’t question her about that night. I’m sorry, I just see that my friend is hurt and I’d like to know why. You answered my questions, though, and I’m grateful, Ms. Luthor.” Lena quirked an eyebrow at Kara, but didn’t say anything about her protective nature.

She turned her attention back to Winn, who was gathering the questions he had written down for Lena. “I’ll start recording the official interview now, if that’s alright with you, Ms. Luthor.” Lena nodded, watching him set up the recorder.

Kara visibly relaxed in Lena’s peripheral, her shoulders relaxing and her hands unclenching. Winn spoke into the recorder, saying his name and Lena’s, dating the interview verbally before setting the recorder down and starting.

“Alright, to start us off I’d like to ask what L-Corp does specifically. It’s well known for being a medical company, working on researching DNA, but what exactly are you researching- that isn’t confidential, of course.” Winn got situated with his laptop, hands hovering above the keyboard, waiting to take notes.

“Well in general yes, L-Corp works in DNA and genetics. We’re currently working on looking into different mutations in DNA, such as substitution mutations; silent, missense, and nonsense. It gets a little complicated in the science, but it has to do with protein’s in DNA. Of course that’s not all the mutations we look at, but it’s what we started with,” Lena answered casually, crossing her legs to get more comfortable.

“So how are you applying this information into the medical field?”

“There’s lots of genetic mutations that can cause debilitating illnesses. If we can catch them early, we can hopefully prevent them. We’re also currently trying to classify what exactly a genetic illness is; some people say cancer is genetic, but whether it shows up in the DNA or not is what we’re testing.”

“Once you start to actually bring your research to full light in the medical world- genetics is a very new territory in hospitals and isn’t really researched by smaller facilities –will it be available to all?” Winn tilted his head, typing away on his computer.

Lena paused before she answered. “Of course I’d love for it to be available to all- and I’m actively striving to make that possible –but currently there are some benefactors and partners that are trying to put a price tag on this type of medicine.”

“Are L-Corp and their partners anywhere close to coming out with some beneficial information for the public?... Or are you guys still in the testing stage?”

“Currently we’re still in the testing stage; we only recently started to get serious with working with others, and partnering with equally as large companies to compile our information together. I’m aware L-Corp hasn’t had the best reputation for the past few years due to some very shady dealings, but I’ve worked hard on pulling us out of those bad habits to start actually helping the medical field.”

“Who’s the one who got you so passionate into this field of work? You seem to enjoy your job very much, and think very highly of what you’ve done for the company.” Winn placed a smile on the end of his sentence, trying to keep his questions casual.

“My father, actually. He’s the one who got me into all of this. He was a well-known alcoholic, and drank himself into an early grave. I was very close to him, but seeing him like that was really upsetting. I’ve always been told that addiction is genetic, and so I was worried that I might turn out to be a drunk just like him.”

“So you took up genetics originally, because you wanted to know what to look for in your own DNA?” Lena nodded, confirming to the recorder with a verbal yes. Winn bobbed his head as he glanced down at the next question he had, reading from the list.

For the next hour or 2 they held the interview; Lena answered almost all his questions, although she avoided the ones about her incarcerated brother and corrupt mother. By the end of the interview, the sky outside the windows had gotten dark, and Kara had finally decided to sit down after switching on the living room lights.

“Okay, well… I think that was everything. Thank you so much for this, again. I didn’t think we’d get this far, I’m sorry if I took up too much of your time.” Lena shook her head, smiling to Winn. He was a very kind man, and she was glad Kara had him as a friend. He passed her judgements with flying colors.

“You’re perfectly fine… In fact, I was going to invite you to stay for dinner. I figured you and Kara still have some catching up to do, and I think she’s safe to go off-duty for a few hours.” Lena looked to Kara, who kept her face stoic, but her eyes glittered with excitement and appreciation. 

She looked to Winn, who looked surprised at the invitation. He only hesitated for a split second before nodding in agreement, grinning back to Kara. “If you don’t mind, I’d really enjoy that.” Lena smiled, happy to know that Kara could spend some time with her friend.

Lena stood, brushing off her pants out of habit. “Perfect, then I’ll order us some dinner,” She paused, looking to Kara, “I’ll be in my office finishing up a bit of work; just let me know when the driver gets here with our meal?”

Kara held eye contact, nodding. It was obvious she wanted to invite Lena to stay around longer, but it would look odd for her to spend so much personal time with her boss. Lena didn’t mind; she really did have some work to finish up. Kara’s bath, and Winn’s interview took up quite a lot of time.

Grabbing her computer off the coffee table, Lena thanked Winn one last time before disappearing into her office. She took a moment to order some family style Italian, putting in Kara’s phone number so that they texted her when the driver had arrived.

She left her door open a few inches, her desk facing the door as she sat in her comfortable rolling chair. She worked on answering her emails as usual, filling out paper work and making a phone call. She could hear Winn and Kara talking, smiling to herself when she heard Kara’s excited voice.

After about 45 minutes the conversation paused, and Lena could hear the apartment door opening and closing, signaling that the food was there. Lena didn’t get up from her desk straight away, busy finishing up a proposal to Grant Genetics on a new procedure.

Lena got so distracted in trying to finish up the last paragraph that she didn’t even notice Kara had pushed her door open, and was standing in the doorway. She only noticed her when she saw Kara right in front of her desk, leaning on it so she could bend forward, her eyes going level with the top of Lena’s computer screen.

The bright blue gaze startled Lena, flinching with a sharp inhale before letting it out with a chuckle of realization. “Did I scare you?” Kara asked with a mischievous grin. “You’re lucky I didn’t have something in my hands, otherwise I’d have thrown it at you,” Lena replied with a smirk.

She glanced behind Kara, looking to see if Winn was anywhere near the door. When she couldn’t see him, she decided to do something rather bold. 

Lena leaned forward on her elbows, moving a little closer to where Kara tilted forward on her hands. “You look good when you smile like that, you know,” Lena practically whispered, her eyes flickering down to Kara’s full pink lips.

The look of flustered shock on Kara’s face was so comical, Lena couldn’t help but burst out laughing. She leaned back in her chair, holding her sides as a few of her bruises ached slightly. Kara’s face got bright red, and when she glanced back to the door Lena remembered that she had to be a little quieter.

“Uhm, we should… Uh… Dinner. Winn’s waiting on us so we can eat dinner,” Kara said in her flustered tone, visibly trying to regain a proper track of though. Lena fought to keep her giggling down, nodding in agreement. She stood, saving her work before shutting the computer down, eventually following Kara to the dining table between the living room and kitchen.

Winn was patiently waiting, texting or something on his phone, not obviously paying attention. He looked up, smiling to the two women as they made their way downstairs. “Thank you again for dinner, Ms. Luthor. Is there something I can do to repay you?”

Lena waved him off, shaking her head as she sat down at the head of the table. Kara had already grabbed plates and utensils, sitting across from Winn and to Lena’s right. “You don’t have to do anything, providing dinner is by no means a hindrance. Please, enjoy,” Lena gestured to the large containers of food.

Every one gathered their own portions of lasagna and pasta salad, Kara not bothering to hide her hunger as she gave herself a massive serving. Lena silently wondered how she managed to stay in such good shape with how she ate. Did she work out in her room or something?

The conversation was light as the 3 adults ate, their mouths full. Lena learned a little bit about Winn, but nothing too out of the ordinary as she listened to the conversation. Compared to how talkative he sounded around Kara, it was clear Lena made him a little uncomfortable with her authority.

It didn’t take long for them to finish their food, Winn and Kara cleaning up together, despite Lena’s attempts to help. Winn kept saying something about how it’d be rude to make the lady of the house clean up.

“You 2 are more than welcome to stay up and have a good time, but unfortunately this old lady has to go to bed… It was lovely meeting you, Winn. I hope you and Ms. Danvers can have some more time together soon,” Lena nodded to Winn and gave Kara a small smile.

She was just about to turn and leave when Winn started to move towards his bags. “Actually, I think it’s getting pretty late, and I don’t want to make Kara too tired. I’ll leave you ladies to have a good night’s rest.”

“You sure, Winn?... Maybe we can hang out again in a few days,” Kara suggested, looking a little disappointed. Although Lena had to admit she could see the tired slump on her shoulders, silently wondering how well she’s been sleeping at night.

Winn was already grabbing his bag, packing up his stuff. “Yeah, I’ve got to get working on this interview so it can be up on the website tomorrow. I’ll make sure to get some free time for you, Kara… Good night, both of you.”

Kara walked Winn to the elevator door, making sure he was comfortable getting out of the apartment by himself. Once Winn was gone, the elevator doors shutting slowly and firmly, Kara turned to Lena. “That was a lot of fun, thank you so much for letting him come over… I’ll try and find someplace else for him and I to hang out, so we don’t impose on you again.”

“You’re not imposing, Kara. I’m glad you had fun, and Winn looks to be a very good friend. I enjoy seeing you happy… I’ll see you in the morning, okay?” Lena moved to start walking up the stairs. “Hey, uhm,” Kara suddenly spoke, Lena looking back to see a nervous look on her face, “Tomorrow, can I cook us lunch?”

Lunch? Made by Kara? That sounded amazing; heavenly even. Lena took her foot off the step and moved over to Kara, who stood awkwardly stiff, watching her with a vague look of confusion.

Lena stood up on her tip toes, gently grabbing the injured side of Kara’s face. She tilted her head and moved forward, her lips gently pressing against Kara’s good cheek. Her skin was soft and blazing hot. “I’d love that,” Lena said with a wide smile as she pulled away.

Kara’s eyes darted all over Lena’s face, the look of flustered shock returning. “Okay. Yeah, cool… And uhm… I promise, I’ll have an answer for you soon,” Kara said softly, slowly leaning into Lena’s hand on her face.

Lena’s smile held strong, but turned gentle as she looked into the beautiful blue eyes before her. “Of course, there’s no rush. I’m a patient woman, I don’t mind waiting.” A look of gratitude passed over Kara’s face as she practically deflated, all the tension in her body fading.

“Thank you… I’ll see you in the morning,” Kara then bent down, Lena now flat on her feet, and kissed her forehead. Tingling heat blossomed from the contact point, Lena’s eyes fluttering closed. If she ever got to kiss Kara on the lips her soul just might leave her body.

Kara stepped away, allowing Lena to say her good night before she turned and trotting upstairs to her bedroom at the end of the cat-walk. She removed all her make-up, and changed into a tank top and running shorts before jumping into bed.

She fell asleep quickly, thinking about how happy she was now that Kara was back to her normal self. Her forehead still tingled from the kiss, making Lena smile more.

But the happiness couldn’t keep the dreams away.

**********

_They were back at the apartments. Lena’s shoulders burned from holding all her weight, dangling from Kara’s hand. Li Yang was above them, a gun in his hand. Kara couldn’t turn around- if she did she’d drop Lena._

_Li Yang pointed the gun at Kara’s back. Lena tried to scream, tried to pull herself up so that Kara could let go and fight off the man above her._

_6 shots rang off, Kara lurching with each one that went into her chest from behind. There was blood coming from her mouth… So much blood._

_Lena was screaming, but nothing was coming out. She could feel Kara’s grip getting looser, until all of a sudden she was falling._

_Down, down, down Lena went. She fell for what felt like forever, the face of the woman she cared about stuck in her mind until she hit the ground below._

_Everything went black._

_Lena was back in the basement._

_But it was different._

_She was alone. No Kara, no James, no Li Yang._

_She was stuck in her chair, struggling to fight against the zip-ties holding her down._

_The figure of Li Yang appeared- or was it James? Lena couldn’t tell –he held the same knife that he’d been using on her the last time._

_Lena had to sit there, getting beaten and tortured until eventually Li or James was tired of her._

_He grabbed his gun again- the same gun used to kill Kara in the previous dream –and aimed it at Lena’s head. When Lena looked past the gun, to the person holding it, she realized it wasn’t Li, or James._

_It was Lillian._

**********

Lena didn’t realize she was awake and screaming until suddenly she felt arms around her. At first she fought against them, smacking at whoever was trying to grab her. She thought it was Yang, or James, but she knew it wasn’t them… She saw them die.

_”They can’t hurt you anymore. You’re safe.”_

Lena realized the voice speaking wasn’t hers. She opened her eyes, freezing in her fighting to see that Kara was holding onto her from the side. Her large arms were wrapped tightly against Lena, pinning her arms to the side so she stopped flailing.

“You’re safe, Lena. They can’t hurt you anymore. I’m here, you don’t have to be scared.”

Kara’s voice was calm, yet strong. She was so sure of her words. So sure that Lena knew they must be true. Kara was there with her, so nothing could hurt her. She wasn’t dead; Yang hadn’t shot her in the back. She wasn’t alone down there in that basement anymore. She was here, with Kara holding her, sitting in her bed at home.

“I-I’m so sorry,” Lena panted out, her lungs refusing to take in air properly. She was shaking, her hands gripping her thighs in attempt to calm down. “I was dreaming and… God it felt so real… I’m so sorry,” Lena turned to Kara, who was staring at her with wide, worried eyes.

“I’ll be okay… You can go sleep; I’ll be okay.” She didn’t believe her own words, but Lena couldn’t put that sort of pressure on Kara. It wasn’t her body guards job to fix her own mental problems.

But Kara didn’t move; didn’t relax her arms. Instead she held on just a little tighter. Her worried look was replaced with defiance, and slight frustration. “I’m not leaving you alone this time. I’m not watching you suffer like this. I’m staying.”

Her voice was strong, and Lena knew that Kara wasn’t asking to be there, she was demanding that she was going to be there. Her arms let go of Lena, and she gestured for her to lay down. At first Lena wanted to protest, to tell Kara that she didn’t need to do this.

The fear that still settled heavily in Lena’s heart, however, said otherwise. Reluctantly Lena laid down. She rested on her right side, Kara carefully scooting under the covers and laying on her left side to face Lena.

“Come here,” Kara demanded in that same voice, pushing and arm under Lena so she could pull her in closer. The instant Lena was enveloped in Kara’s warmth she relaxed. All her terror and fear evaporated, replaced with a sense of security.

Lena closed her eyes, breathing in that familiar scent of coffee and honey that Kara always gave off, moving a little bit closer, her arms tucked into her chest. “This doesn’t hurt, does it?” Lena asked sleepily, remembering that Kara’s back might be giving her a hard time.

“No, it’s okay… Get some sleep, okay? You’ve looked exhausted for the past 3 days now.” Lena hummed her compliance, her mind already drifting back into much needed sleep. She no longer dreamed of the Emerald Dragons, or the basement. She didn’t really dream at all, her mind so focused on the warm body she was being held against.

**********

When Lena woke up, she was laying on her back. There was a gentle weight on the right side of her body, coffee and honey filling her nose as she laid there. It was comforting and warm, and Lena didn’t want to move for the rest of her life. 

She felt Kara shift on top of her, her right leg slung lazily across Lena’s own right leg, and her right arm resting across Lena’s stomach. Kara rested her head on the pillow next to Lena, who had her arm tucked comfortably under Kara’s torso. It was a mess of limbs in all honesty, but both women were too comfortable to care.

Lena was just about to doze off all over again when suddenly she heard her phone buzzing in a phone call on her bedside table. Kara shifted a little more on top of Lena, waking up from the noise. Lena sighed, and had to move out from under Kara so she could roll to the left and grab her phone.

The caller ID said it was Lena’s receptionist, Jessica. It also said that it wasn’t even 7:30 in the morning. Lena sighed heavily, swiping to answer the phone call. “Yes?” She said in her gravely morning voice, letting her head fall against the pillows again. She felt Kara’s fingers brush against her back, sending tingles up Lena’s spine.

“Good morning, Ms. Luthor,” Jessica’s voice responded to the curt answer, “You asked me to call you as a reminder that you have a conference call with Grant Genetics and the investors of the company at 8 this morning. Your mother would also like me to add that she needs Ms. Danvers to check her email. She’s got a new list of potential security aid.”

Right… The stupid phone call… She’d forgotten all about that meeting. “Okay, thank you. Anything else?” Jessica declined that she had any more information, Lena hanging up. She could hear Kara shuffling around behind her, turning to see she was slowly lifting herself up onto her elbows, wincing as her back seemed to painfully protest.

“Hey, you know you can sleep some more,” Lena put her hand out, gently touching Kara’s flexing bicep. “Nah, I’m already awake. I’ll make us some coffee, if you need to get ready for that meeting.” Kara’s hair was a wild mess of bed head; a complete stark contrast to her normally perfect uniform when she’s around other people.

Lena sat up so she was sitting, watching Kara get up and slide to the edge of the bed. Her tank top was loose, showing the bandages wrapped around her torso. “When I’m done with this call, I’d like to wash your back again. The doctor mentioned cleaning it at least twice a day.”

Kara looked childishly reluctant, remind Lena of a dog who didn’t like baths. “Fine, if you insist,” Kara huffed. Lena couldn’t help but smiled at how adorable she was, amused by her dislike for taking care of her injuries.

“I do insist… This meeting shouldn’t take long. You heard the bit about checking your email, right?” Kara nodded as she hopped off the bed. Lena also rolled out of her bed, already missing the warmth of Kara’s body against hers.

Before Kara fully left the room she looked to Lena, who was just about to step into her closet. “Hey, uh… Are you okay? I know last night wasn’t very good, and I really don’t want to overstep my bounds but… I’m worried for you, Lena.”

They held eye contact for a long moment. Lena was unsure on how to answer that question. Was she okay? At the moment, she was fine; being around Kara made her feel safe and comfortable. There were still moments, though, where Lena found herself stuck in that survival head space. Like she was back in that apartment building fighting for Kara and her life.

“I don’t… I don’t know. Sometimes I’m fine, I don’t even remember the whole thing… Then other times it’s almost impossible to forget what happened.” Kara frowned, a sad look on her face. “Do you want to talk about it?” Lena swallowed hard before shaking her head. “Not right now.”

Kara didn’t push, even though she looked dissatisfied with the answer. “Okay. Well I’m always here once you’re ready. I know all about trauma, and I can relate to how you’re feeling right now.” That’s right… This isn’t anything new to Kara. Who knows what she saw during her time in the military. She wouldn’t judge Lena for the thoughts and memories she’s been struggling with all this time.

“I’ll keep that in mind. Thank you, Kara.” She gave her close friend a small smile, nodding to her. Kara returned the smile before leaving the room. Lena took a few deep breaths, trying to rewire her brain to think about work, and not the Emerald Dragons.

She got changed into another comfortable yet semi-formal outfit, brushing her teeth and putting her hair into a high bun before going to her office. She got all her work information booted up just in time for her phone to ring.

The meeting was just as boring as Lena assumed it was going to be. It was just all the companies explaining to their investors what new information they’ve found out after this most recent experiment. Lena was almost certain none of the investors had any idea what Cat Grant of herself were talking about.

Unfortunately, due to an overwhelming amount of questions from each investor, the meeting trailed on for an unnecessary amount of time. At one point during the beginning of the meeting Kara had showed up with a large cup of black coffee for Lena. She smiled wide at the sweet gesture, mouthing her thanks.

After over 2 hours the call finally ended. Lena sat forward, holding her face in her hands as she tried not to groan too loud. She felt like she was losing brain cells with how dumb some of the people sounded, trying to make sense of a science that they know nothing about.

But, it was over, and Lena didn’t have to deal with the endless questions any more. She took her empty coffee mug, stretching her arms high above her head, before carefully walking out onto the cat walk. Kara was in the kitchen, putting away what looked like groceries.

Lena paused, quirking her eyebrow at the counter full of bags. Did Kara leave while she was on the call? Lena limped down the stairs, moving to reveal herself to Kara, who smiled wide at her. “Did you go out?” Lena asked, looking to the groceries.

“No, actually. I asked Jess if she could help us out and grab some things. I made up the excuse that you were tired of take-out, and wanted to learn something new while you’re stuck at home,” Kara said as she put a large carton of chicken broth away.

Lena watched her with a fascinated look. She’d never seen her kitchen so well stocked. “I thought maybe I’d make us both lunch and dinner; I hope you don’t mind.” Kara paused in what she was doing, looking to Lena warily.

Lena quickly started to shake her head, the thought of a home cooked meal making her mouth water. “No, not at all. I think that’d be really nice… Would you like me to help with anything?” Lena moved forward to take one of the bags, looking into it to see if she could help put the contents away.

Kara agreed with a beaming smile, already working on one of the last few bags. It didn’t take very long for the 2 women to put away the groceries. Lena was a little slow, her knee refusing to allow her to move at a decent speed. Kara seemed to be full of energy, whooshing around the kitchen like a tornado.

Once they were done, Lena looked around at the over-stocked pantry, smiling at the homely feeling she felt in her chest. She loved her apartment, but there had always been a sense of detachment to it. Now, with Kara’s touch, it felt like an actual home.

Lena turned to Kara, who loaded some of the left over dishes from her breakfast into the dishwasher. “Okay, now, bath time.” Lena smirked at the adorably disgruntled look that passed of Kara’s face. “It won’t be so bad this time, and I won’t take as long, don’t worry!” Lena soothed, trying not to laugh.

Kara huffed, but nodded. “Fine, if you insist.” Lena gestured for Kara to follow her, limping upstairs to her bathroom again. Once the warm water filled the tub a few inches, Lena left Kara to undress. When she was called back in, they repeated what they had done the day before.

She removed Kara’s wrappings, throwing them away before she started to dab water all over Kara’s back. Lena was able to work faster, and Kara didn’t seem to have such a hard time with the water running across her sore back this time.

When they got to the foaming soap part, Lena made sure to switch between blowing on the soapy wounds, and distracting Kara with kisses along her neck, shoulders, and the top of her head. The main reason she had first started to kiss Kara the day before was because she felt so bad that Kara was in pain- even if it was just an uncomfortable burning.

She was trying to say how sorry she was with each press of her lips. Had she gotten a little carried away when she started to press her hand along Kara’s neck? Maybe… But she heard no complaints from Kara. Now the main reason Lena was continuing to distract Kara with the sweet kisses was to show her affection.

Kara might have not given her an answer just yet, and she understood her hesitation, but she didn’t seem to mind Lena embracing her feelings. Kara had already extended a hand in a way the day before, when she not only complimented Lena on her outfit, but returned the kiss good night to Lena’s forehead.

Once Lena finished washing and putting hydrating ointment onto each wound, she drained the water and dressed Kara’s back again with fresh gauze. She gave Kara a playful pat on the head before she stood and stepped out of the tub.

“All done! See? What wasn’t so bad,” Lena joked with a playful smile. Kara turned to look at her with a playful frown, narrowing her eyes. Lena fought her eyes, trying not to look down at Kara’s exposed collar bone, and the side of her breast while she turned.

Lena turned instead to gather the rest of the medical items on the side of the tub. “Do you need help with anything else?” She asked, referencing the fact that Kara had a hard time with her bra last time. Kara shook her head, watching Lena quietly for a moment. “This bra hooks in the front, so I’ll be able to put it on. Thank you, though.”

Grabbing one last thing, Lena nodded and smiled to Kara before leaving her to dry off and get dressed. It was almost noon by now, and Lena could feel her stomach start to grumble in hunger. Maybe she could get Kara to start on lunch a little bit early?

It only took Kara a few minutes to get dressed, coming downstairs where Lena sat in the living room. “Are you hungry? I could help you with lunch, if you’d like,” Lena suggested, gesturing to the kitchen. “The dish I’m doing isn’t really complicated, so I don’t need help per-say, but I’d love to have a cheer leader, if you’d like to fill that role.”

Lena smirked, her mind jumping to women in short skirts and tight tank tops. She silently wondered what Kara would do if she was dressed like that for her. Lena blinked out of her imagination, trying to not acknowledge her slightly blushing cheeks. “I’d love to watch you cook and cheer for you, yeah.”

Kara smiled and moved to the kitchen, Lena going and sitting on one of the barstools in front of the bar top. She rested an elbow against the counter, watching Kara move around to grab all the items and ingredients she needed for the dish.

“Are you even looking at a recipe?” Lena asked, noticing that she was starting without a cook book or laptop open. “Nope, this is something my mom taught me a long time ago. The main dish is a honey glazed salmon, with a side dish of spinach tetrazzini.” Lena’s mouth watered just thinking about the food Kara listed, a wise smile spreading across her face.

She watched Kara work effortlessly, starting with baking the salmon before moving onto a handmade alfredo sauce. Lena would constantly compliment how amazing the kitchen smelled, and how good the food looked already. The compliments seemed to invigorate Kara, who became more and more lively. 

It didn’t take too long for the meal to be finished, Lena stepping in to set the table and help Kara bring the food to the table. Once everything was ready, they sat down to eat.

The salmon practically melted in Lena’s mouth, and the pasta made Lena audibly moan with how amazing it tasted. Kara watched her as she took the first few bites, her blue eyes gleaming with happiness at knowing Lena liked her food.

“So, would you say my cooking is at least girlfriend material?” Kara asked with a playful smile. Lena made eye contact with Kara, smirking and nodding. 

Was this Kara trying to hint at her answer to Lena’s question? She had no idea. But the playful smile, and the adorable look in Kara’s eyes were too distracting for Lena to look too far into the comment.

The 2 casually talked through the meal, Lena happily getting seconds after she finished her first plate. It was a calm and relaxed setting that put Lena at complete ease. She was so comfortable around Kara that it was easy to forget about the drama of the Emerald Dragons.

Once they had both eaten their fill, Lena started to clean up. Kara tried to help, but Lena gently batted her away, saying that if Kara cooked then she was going to clean. Kara scoffed at her, but accepted the defeat, moving to sit on the couch with her laptop.

Lena put the left overs away, and started to wash the dirty dishes in the sink. She was just casually thinking about what she needed to do once she was able to get back to L-Corp. As she thought about the future, she remembered that she had read an email from Grant Genetics inviting her back to New York.

They were holding a formal celebration over their most recent successes, the venues being an art museum. Lena was so busy thinking about the gallery that she didn’t notice that Kara had stopped typing on her laptop, and was watching Lena across the room.

“So in a little under a month, we’ll be going back to New York… I figured by then we’d both be in much better shape, and we could make a really fun trip out of it? Grant Genetics is holding a party, and the location kind of reminded me of Rome,” Lena didn’t hear Kara stand up, still looking down at the dishes.

“I’d love to go back to Rome,” Lena continued, “It was so much fun, and I’d love to go back to the art museum we went to last-“ Lena froze in her rambling, seeing two hands rest against the edge of the counter on either side of her. She felt Kara’s warmth radiating off of her back, sending a shiver down her spine.

She felt Kara slowly lean forward, Lena’s back stiffening so she was standing just a little taller. She wasn’t uncomfortable- quite the contrary; Lena started to slowly lean back into Kara, pushing gently into her front.

Kara leaned her head forward, her cheek brushing against Lena’s ear. “That sounds like a lot of fun,” Kara said in a quiet voice that bordered on a husky whisper. Lena swallowed heavily, trying to ignore the fluttering in her stomach.

Lena tried to remain normal, continuing to slowly wash the plate in her hand. “I thought so, too. I really love looking at all the art.” She stayed quiet for a little while longer, finishing up the last dish in the sink before turning it off. She didn’t step away from the sink, and neither did Kara.

“Would you ever want to go back to Rome?” Lena asked, feeling Kara’s chin pressing lightly against her shoulder. “If it didn’t mean living without you, I’d move to Rome honestly,” Kara answered without hesitation. Lena felt her heart quicken it’s pace in her chest at Kara’s words.

She didn’t want to leave her. She wanted to stay. She wanted to be with Lena.

Taking a deep breath to try and calm the anxiety that rose into her throat, Lena turned around to face Kara. Her hands stayed planted on the counter edge, her hip cocked out in an oddly attractive way. Lena’s eyes glided down Kara and then back up before she spoke in a low whisper.

“How much do you want me?“ Lena needed to know. She wanted to hear Kara say it aloud; to know that she wanted Lena as much as she wanted her.

Kara’s eyes looked all over Lena’s face, visibly studying her expression. The smallest smile pulled at Kara’s lips before she answered. “I want you more than the sun wants to meet the moon,” Kara whispered back.

There was a brief pause where Lena took in her words. She froze, holding eye contact with Kara. How in the world could she ever reply to something like that? The way it made her heart race in her chest was indescribable.

Lena was on the brink of opening her mouth to say something, when she realized that Kara was slowly starting to lean forward on her arms. Her blue eyes moved down to Lena’s lips, a hungry passion shining through the beautiful blue.

In a rush of simultaneous movement, both women collided together. The feeling of Kara’s lips pressing against Lena’s was revolutionary. Like fireworks were being set off in her head. Lena lifted her still damp hands, pressing them gently to Kara’s blazing cheeks.

Kara’s lips were soft, and a little wet, moving perfectly against Lena’s. It felt as if all the invisible weight on Lena’s shoulders fell right off, feeling Kara’s nose brush her cheek as they moved in sync.

The kiss was full of passion, and affection, and repressed feelings that could finally be released after so long. The feeling of Kara’s lips on Lena’s forehead the night before was nothing like it was now. Tingling pleasure radiated across Lena’s skin with every passing second.

They broke apart only for a split second, Lena gasping for air before Kara moved in again, switching how her head tilted. There was an electric shock that sparked across Lena’s bottom lip at the sensation of Kara’s teeth accidentally brushing against her skin.

Lena moved her hands from Kara’s cheeks, instead wrapping her arms around her neck. She felt Kara’s hands move off of the counter, wresting respectfully against her waist. She pressed in a little closer, her hips brushing Lena’s.

They kissed for what felt like forever, but was in reality less than 10 minutes. Lena eventually pulled away, a question blazing in her mind. She was panting, her face bright red and her lips swollen. “So uh… Is that you saying you’re ready?”

Kara smirked, laughing that musical laugh that Lena loved so much. “Yes, I’m ready… I want to call you mine.” Lena smiled back at Kara, butterflies soaring through her chest. “Then I’m all yours,” She whispered before leaning back into another kiss.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Eh? Eeeeeeeeh??? :D
> 
> -Aries


	11. Chapter 11: The Starry Night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kara and Lena go to New York for a company party with Grant Genetics.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> NSFW WARNING: Sexual Content (Marked out as usual, so people can skip over it if wanted)
> 
> This chapter is 90% fluff 10% smut. Did I write waaaaaay more than I meant to? Definitely. Do I regret it? Heck no.   
> Enjoy! The plot will get back on track next chapter.
> 
> Have a good week,  
> -Aries

Kara laid on the table, the hospital gown undone to reveal her back. She could feel the slight snipping of scissors and tugging of tweezers as the 2 nurses worked to undo the stitches in her back. She rested her chin on her crossed arms in front of her, feeling as if she was at some morbid spa.

Lena was texting someone on her phone, her thumbs flying wildly over the keyboard, her green eyes scanning the message she was texting every time she paused to proof read. The bruising on her cheek was completely gone, and all of her stitches had also been removed earlier.

The doctors told her that she was now in perfect health, except for her injured knee, which now needed a brace. The tendons and ligaments were still healing from the brutal blows they had suffered 3 weeks ago, so her knee cap kept painfully shifting out of place. All of her fractures and bruised organs were completely healed, to both Lena and Kara’s relief.

Kara’s back had healed with thick scar tissue around the lacerations that had been the worst. Kara had secretly counted how many scars there were before they had left for the hospital; to her dismay there were 11 extremely obvious scars that extended across her entire back. There were 14 small scars that were only really noticeable if Kara was cold, or in specific lighting, but they were just as bad in her mind.

The scars were ugly, and made Kara feel like she had a sort of deformation now. She never mentioned her disgruntlement to Lena, however. They haven’t even been dating a month; she doesn’t need that kind of stress in her life right now. Not with her PTSD giving her a hard enough time.

Recently Kara’s been finding herself just defaulting to sleeping in Lena’s bed with her at night. The one night she did try to give her a little bit of space by sleeping in her own bed, Lena woke her up by crawling into the bed around 3 in the morning. Not that she minded, or anything. She was also struggling with nightmares; they just didn’t seem to harm her as much as they did Lena.

Lena had been shivering and was covered in a cold sweat that night. When Kara tried to ask her if she was okay, she just said she’d rather talk about it later. Later never really came, Lena brushing Kara’s questions off by saying it was her usual dreams. Kara didn’t really know what that meant, considering Lena had never explained or described her ‘usual dreams’ to her before.

Kara felt a nurse run her hand all long her back, feeling for any hidden stitches. When she couldn’t feel any, both nurses backed up, one of them giving a satisfied sigh. “Okay, I think that’s everything! Do you know if we’ve forgotten any spots?” Kara moved to sit up, reaching behind herself to re-clasp her bra.

They had already taken all the stitches off her arms, legs, and the fancy sutures on her cheek that made that scar rather unnoticeable; only Kara could really tell where it was when she stared at herself in the mirror, but at first glance there looked to be nothing wrong. 

“Nope, you’ve gotten everything. Thank you 2 so much,” Kara smiled politely, nodding to the 2 nurses as they left, one saying she’d return with some prescription paperwork for Lena’s knee. Kara waited till the door was completely shut before hopping off of the exam table, pulling the gown off.

She still had her pants on, and a very simple black bra, moving to grab the rest of her clothing. “Is everything set for the trip tomorrow?” Kara asked, looking over to Lena as she pulled her undershirt over her head quickly, feeling a little self-conscious. Although, there was no more pain or tightness in her back, which felt great. It was a very freeing sensation being able to lift her arms over her head again.

Lena looked up from her phone, her eyes flickering to the disappearing midriff of her girlfriend…. Her girlfriend… It was still a foreign word to both women, but Kara already loved the word, secretly saying it over and over in her head.

“Yup, everything’s in order. Lillian said she hired the private plane company you recommended. She also wants to know if you’ve looked at that list of potential Immortals to grow the security unit?” Kara pulled her button up shirt over her shoulders, working on trying to line up the buttons to the holes when suddenly Lena walked over.

She took the shirt from Kara’s hands, starting from the top and working her way down. Kara smiled down to her girlfriend sweetly, Lena trying to hide her own grin by looking down at what she was doing. “I’ve looked, but I’m still doing checks on them. I’m made to wait 3 days for each background request, so it’s taking a lot longer then I’d like… That Sawyer woman looks promising, though. I’ll probably request an interview with her after this trip.”

The 2 women were currently planning on going on a 4-day trip back to New York. The first day was reserved for traveling, starting tomorrow. Then the next 2 days were going to be a mixture of a company party at the Museum of Modern Art, and then a follow up meeting with Grant Genetics the next day. The final day was once again reserved to travel, although Kara wouldn’t be surprised if Lena decided they would do some sightseeing before leaving for their overnight flight.

Lena finished up buttoning Kara’s shirt, giving it a comedic tug, as if to make sure it was on securely. Kara snorted, half tempted to bend down and give Lena a quick kiss. She knew better, however, knowing that the nurse could walk in at any moment. So, instead, Kara raised her hand and gently booped Lena on the tip of the nose.

The two smiled sweetly at one another for a moment before Kara had to take a half step back, so she could look down and tuck her shirt into her pants. Lena took the cue to move backwards as well, going back to her seat across the room.

Just as Kara was slipping on her jacket, there was a small knock on the door before the nurse entered the room again. She gave Lena her prescription paperwork, instructing her on when to take the medication, and when to wear her brace. Kara listened intently, knowing that Lena was going to fight her on wearing the knee brace.

With everything finished up, the women gathered their items and started to leave. Kara glanced at the small wall mirror one last time, looking at the slightly shiny scar on her right cheek before guiding Lena out of the room, strolling to the waiting room where Finn and Ammarah sat.

They had helped Kara with escort Lena to the doctor, Kara deciding that it was best to increase the security on her girlfriend until this mafia war was truly over. They kept getting bolder and more aggressive with their moves, and the last thing Kara needed was to get overpowered all over again.

“Thanks for waiting,” Kara mumbled to her 2 helping hands. She still put on her professional face when there were others around, or in public, just to make sure no one suspected her relationship with her boss. 

Ammarah smiled wide, bouncing up happily from her seat, “No problem! There was a funny show on the TV to keep us entertained.” She was a very bubbly woman, and if they had been in a different circumstance, Kara probably would have tried to befriend her.

Finn was a bit slower to stand, a rather mellow man with a few face tattoos and an eyebrow piercing. He flashed Kara a smile and a nod, moving to walk along Lena’s left, while Ammarah moved to the opposite side. There was a third Immortal that moved to walk in back of Lena. Kara didn’t know his name only knowing that he was a tall, quiet man with long, coarse dreads and dark skin.

The group walked out of the doctor’s office and got into the large SUV, Kara making sure she was the one driving. They made a few stops; first to L-Corp so Lena could grab some items for New York, then they picked up the pain meds before finally returning back to Lena’s- and now basically Kara’s –apartment.

Kara gave the Immortal’s vehicle to Ammarah, who walked them to the door of the apartments, happily saying goodbye to Kara and Lena before bouncily walking back to the car. As usual Kara led Lena through the large apartment building up to the penthouse. She didn’t relax or allow herself to even properly look at Lena until the doors to the elevators closed behind them as they stepped into the apartment.

All the rigid tension in Kara’s body relaxed, audibly letting out a sigh. She instantly removed her suit jacket, and pulled her shirt out of her pants. Lena strolled to the kitchen, tossing her new medication into the weird medicine shelf she kept in the kitchen; Kara asked her why she kept all her pills in the kitchen, and Lena’s only excuse was because she had too much makeup in her bathroom. 

“Now that these stitches are out I’m half tempted to take a real bath for once,” Kara said, missing the feeling of being able to lay in the warm, bubbly water. It used to be a ritual of hers to take a bath once a week, mixed with Epsom salt and other herbal muscle relaxers to avoid getting too sore from standing all day.

Lena turned her head to look at Kara as she put her pills away, a smirk visible on her crimson lips even all the way across the penthouse. “Is that an invitation?” Lena asked in a sultry voice that sent a wave of heat rolling down Kara’s spine.

They’ve been together for almost 3 weeks now, but they had yet to actually sleep together. They had made out for a few hours a handful of times- and there had been a lot of exploring and heavy petting throughout –but for the most part they were both being respectful of each other’s boundaries.

It wasn’t that Kara didn’t want to have sex with Lena- oh god how bad she wanted to have her sometimes –but they were still figuring each other out. There was one night, both of them lying in bed and watching a boring movie, where they actually talked about things they liked.

For the most part they seemed to agree on almost everything, although there were a few things both of them had mentioned that the other hadn’t ever thought of. Nothing Lena told Kara made her nose wrinkle, so she took that as a good sign.

Kara cleared her throat, feeling her cheeks starting to turn red. Lena watched her as she visibly debated her answer, Kara’s lips parted slightly as she thought. Before she could answer, unfortunately, Lena’s phone started to ring in her back pocket.

Lena sighed, glancing at the caller ID. “Maybe next time, baby. I’ve got to take this; they wouldn’t be calling unless it was an emergency,” Lena looked at Kara with a disappointed look. Kara swallowed hard and nodded, waving her off. “Do your work stuff. I’ll be in my bathroom,” She replied.

Her girlfriend answered the phone with her typical authoritative tone that made the heat in Kara’s cheeks warm up even more. She wondered if maybe a cold shower would be a better idea. Kara turned and trotted upstairs, turning into her bedroom.

She grabbed her favorite hoodie, a pair of her most comfortable jeans, and some just as comfortable undergarments to change into before crossing into her bathroom. It wasn’t nearly as big as Lena’s, but the stand-alone claw tub was big enough to fit at least 3 grown adults in it.

Kara started the hot bath, plugging the tub and putting some music on the fancy Bluetooth speakers that was built into the bathroom ceiling. She bobbed her head to the beat of the music, starting to undo the buttons of her shirt.

Just before Kara stepped into the bath, she took some of the Epsom salt and a honey milk tea bath bomb that she had brought from her old apartment, dropping them both into the water. Once the water was a cloudy white, and there was no more fizzing Kara stepped into the tub.

Her hair was already up in a bun, so Kara had no problems sinking low into the steaming water, sighing heavily as she rested the back of her head against the edge of the tub. She already started to feel clean, now that she could actually touch her back and scrub where all her stitches and old wounds once were.

Kara didn’t really think of much as she relaxed in the water. Of course Lena was in the back of her mind, Kara hoping that the emergency phone call didn’t put her in a bad mood. Lena was good as separating her work life from her normal life, but there’s been a few times where she’s had a particularly rough day that puts her in a constant bad mood.

The best thing Kara could do, she found out, was make Lena some tea and put on one of her favorite shows; The Office. There’s something incredibly amusing and ironic to Kara about how a successful business woman finds joy in watching a manager of a failing paper company play around all day and find such uncommon ways to mess things up for his employees.

For the next 45 minutes Kara relaxed in the bath tub. The only reason she made herself get out was because she hated how her fingertips turned into raisins. It reminded her of one of her training lessons in the Army; They would wake you up in the middle of the night, put you on a small boat and drive you out multiple miles off shore. Then they’d make you swim your way all the way back to shore. It made Kara a very accomplished swimmer very quickly, but her fingers were wrinkly for what felt like days after that.

Kara wrapped herself in one of the thick towels hanging on the wall, pulling her hair out of its bun as she looked in the mirror. Her hair was long, blonde, and had large wavy curls in it. She played with it for a moment, scrunching it up in her hands and then pulling a strand to its full length.

Even with its curls towards the end her hair reached to her shoulder blades. She pulled the front section of her hair forward, styling it to make it look as if she had bangs across her forehead. She snorted at the look, switching between her normal side bang, then blunt bangs. She giggled, amusingly wondering if she should cut them.

Quickly getting dressed into her personal clothing, Kara went to go see if Lena was off of her phone call. She stopped into her office, poking her head through the door. Lena was typing away on her computer, once again so focused on her work that she didn’t notice her girlfriend.

Kara moved to walk into the room, quietly clearing her throat to announce her presents. Lena looked up and automatically smiled, sitting back in her chair slightly. “Hey you,” she greeted sweetly, watching Kara walk over to the back of her desk and sit on the very edge of it, her legs outstretched and crossed at the ankles as she faced her.

“How was your bath?” Lena asked, her hand reaching up to dance her fingertips across the top of Kara’s thigh casually. Kara subconsciously outstretched her own hand to gently touch her fingers. She had learned very early on that one of Lena’s love languages was physical touch; which was a big one of hers as well, so it worked out perfectly. “It was good, very relaxing,” She replied, pausing for a moment.

“Question,” Kara launched into her joking proposal, “Do you think I’d look good in bangs?” Lena looked surprised by the question, taking a moment to study Kara’s face and hair. “I mean… You could definitely pull them off and still look just as beautiful,” Lena tilted her head and offered a smile.

Kara scoffed at how sweet she sounded, despite the fact that she was very obviously trying to hit that she didn’t love the look of bangs on people. “Thank you for your support, even if you don’t want to openly tell me no,” Kara smirked, leaning forward.

Lena happily accepted the kiss, leaning upwards meeting Kara’s lips. It was sweet and soft, the faintest taste of bitter coffee and sweet lipstick spreading across the tip of Kara’s tongue as they moved in sync together.

They held the kiss for a few moments before Kara pulled away only a few inches. “I have lipstick on me now, don’t I?” She asked with a wide grin. Lena’s green eyes flickered down to her partner’s lips, snorting loudly as she nodded. “Quite a lot, actually… Sorry?”

Kara laughed at the fake apology. “No you’re not,” She beamed down at Lena as she leaned in to quickly peck her before fully sitting up, scrubbing off the lipstick with her palm. “Want me to make some dinner?” Kara offered, glancing at the time.

The way Lena’s face lit up made Kara’s chest swell with affection. “I’d love that!” She said, excitement and happiness gleaming in her eyes. Kara had learned very early on that a home cooked meal was the best way to Lena’s heart, so she made it a habit to cook her as many meals as she could.

“Great… If you’re not too busy, I’d love to have my cheer leader with me,” Kara offered gently, glancing at Lena’s screen. She seemed to be working on some last minute things for Grant Genetics. Lena sighed and frowned at the computer. “I’ve got to finish this, but when I’m done I’ll be right down.”

Kara nodded in understanding, standing as she quickly pecked Lena’s forehead. “Don’t rush, I’ll survive one night without you boosting my ego,” she joked, Lena chuckling. Kara strolled out of the room, stopping by her one once more to grab her laptop.

As she got down to the kitchen she started to look up recipes for what she had in mind, quickly finding what she needed. She gathered all the ingredients and started to work on the meal, playing music quietly on a small speaker that she had also brought from her own apartment, setting it up on the fridge.

Kara just casually swayed along to her music, tasting the sauce she was making as it simmered on the stove. She could hear Lena walking in back of her, but didn’t realize how close she was until Kara felt hands slowly slide around her waist.

Lena hugged her around the middle, squeezing her arms tightly for a moment, affection coming off of her in waves. Kara leaned back into the hold ever so slightly, smiling down at the stove. “Here, try this,” Kara said, taking a clean spoon and dipping it into the pan before blindly handing it behind her.

She felt Lean gently take the spoon, feeling her cheek and jaw move against her back as she pressed the side of her head against Kara. She hummed in approval, handing the now licked clean spoon back. “That’s divine, Kara! I can’t wait to see what you do with it.”

Lena’s arms once again squeezed Kara tightly. She silently wondered if this was what heaven was like; cooking dinner for the woman she cared about the most. No one else, just Kara, Lena, and their happy apartment. A content, affectionate warmth settled in Kara’s chest as she felt Lena’s arms around her.

They both stood like that for a while, Kara working on their dinner as Lena hugged her and watched from behind. At one point all Kara had to do was get some water boiling for the second half of the dish, setting the sauce aside on a low simmer.

As they waited, a slower song that Kara had an unnecessary love for started to play. She smiled to herself, turning in Lena’s arms to face her. “Do you want to dance?” Kara asked sweetly, already grabbing Lena’s hand and waist.

Lena smiled, intertwining her fingers with Kara’s as she grabbed her bicep. “You know how to dance?” Lena asked, tilting her head as she allowed Kara to push her backwards into the middle of the kitchen. “We had to learn for a formal dance in the Army; nothing fancy, just the Waltz box step.”

The music started to pick up, starting the exposition. Kara led, holding Lena close as they just swayed in the middle of the kitchen. Lena rested her head against her shoulder, Kara resting her cheek against the top of Lena’s head.

It was slow and casual, the feeling of affection still swelling in Kara’s chest. “I don’t think I’ve ever been this happy,” Lena suddenly whispered, her breathe brushing against Kara’s neck. Kara shifted her head a little, but didn’t stop their dance.

She squeezed Lena’s hand in hers, grinning into her hair. “I’m glad I could be the one to make you happy, then… But this? This is nothing; we’ve got plenty of time to beat this happiness,” Kara whispered back, chuckling. She felt Lena’s head shifting under her, lifting her chin so she could look up at her.

“You’re really something, you know that?” Lena smiled that dazzling smile that filled Kara with joy. There was always a sense of accomplishment when she was able to make Lena smile like this. She replied be leaning down and gently kissing her girlfriend- god it felt so good to say that –smiling against her lips.

As the song starts to end, Kara stops the dance, standing straight. By now the water was at a perfect rolling boil. “You know what we should do?” Lena suggested, allowing Kara to let her go so she could attend to the water. Kara hummed to show she was listening.

“We should watch a horror movie after dinner. Curl up in bed, maybe with some ice cream, and enjoy the scares.” Kara smiled, loving the idea of huddling close to Lena as they watched a scary movie. It was fun to use the age old trope of using their fear as an excuse to cuddle.

Kara agreed excitedly, throwing out a few suggestions. Lena borrowed Kara’s laptop to look up the suggestions, mentioning a few of her own as she described the plots. In the end they decided to watch Crimson Peak, Kara finishing up dinner right as they both agreed on the movie.

As usual Lena set the table, Kara bringing the large dish over so they could serve themselves. It was always amusing seeing how quickly Lena ate her first serving, jumping in for more straight away. It felt like only a few weeks ago that Lena made a comment on how hungrily Kara always ate.

There were no left overs to put away, both women having eaten quite a bit. Lena of course started to do the dishes, scolding Kara when she tried to help. “You know we could get to the movie faster if I helped you,” Kara mumbled as she pouted, leaning against the counter.

“I do, but helping out by doing the dishes makes me feel less useless; you cook, I clean.” Lena glanced over with a playful smile. Kara couldn’t help but smile back, that familiar warmth of affection spreading through her chest again.

Once Lena finished the dishes- It didn’t really take much time at all –Kara hurried up the stairs and to Lena’s room. She did a running jump and landed on the bed, bouncing so high she almost fell off. Lena, who managed to see the very ending of her gymnastics burst out laughing, which caused Kara to start laughing as well.

“Baby, you’re are as graceful as a squirrel on drugs,” Lena managed to say through her laughter, which only made her laugh harder. Kara sat up, blowing a few stray hairs out of her face, beaming as they both started to calm down. “Yeaaaah, I haven’t don’t that since middle school… Now I remember why.”

Lena climbed onto the bed, grabbing the remote to the TV and started to navigate to the movies. Normally this is when Kara would make popcorn, but considering they were both stuffed from dinner she just opted to snuggle down into the blankets. Kara grabbed Lena around the hips and pulled her in closer, Lena squealing in surprise before laughing and holding Kara closer.

The movie had just started, Mia Wasikowska’s voice talking through the speakers, when suddenly Lena started to wiggle out of Kara’s hug. Kara gave her a quizzical look, reluctantly opening her arms so she could slide off the bed. “We forgot PJ’s!” Lena said in a playfully exasperated tone. She quickly paused the movie so they didn’t miss anything.

Kara sat up, the scoff in her throat cutting short as she watched Lena- out in the open –pull off her blouse. Lena’s back was turned towards Kara, so she couldn’t see anything overtly sexual, but it still made her automatically turn her head away. She felt like she still needed to be polite, even though the 2 of them were dating.

Sliding off the bed as well, Kara tried her best not to glance over to Lena as she left to go put on the PJ’s in her own room. Right before she left the room, however, she ‘subconsciously’ glanced over. There was a _lot_ of legs and lace, Kara’s face burning red as she quickly turned away, hurrying out of the room.

Part of Kara wanted to grab her PJ’s and bring them back to Lena’s room, just to see how Lena would react to Kara changing in front of her, but the scars on her back stopped her. So, instead, Kara just quickly got changed into her t-shirt and running shorts. She offhandedly remembered to take out her contacts and switch to her glasses, just so she didn’t have to get up again.

When Kara returned, Lena was back in bed, her legs snuggly buried under the covers and her own glasses on. She smiled sweetly to Kara- although there was an odd look in her eyes -flipping the blankets over and patting Kara’s side of the bed. She didn’t do a running jump this time, but Kara did excitedly crawl back into the pile of blankets.

They resumed their positions of Lena cuddling into Kara’s chest, Kara holding her tightly, as they turned the movie back on. They got through the exposition of the movie, Edith (Mia Wasikowska) running to find Thomas (Tom Hiddleston), unaware of her father’s untimely demise.

Kara was so infatuated with the movie, dying to know who Edith’s father’s killer was that she didn’t notice Lena had looked away from the movie. She had been oddly quiet the entire time, considering Lena liked to whisper little cute comments during movies, something seemingly on her mind.

The soft pressure of Lena’s warm lips kissing the corner of Kara’s jaw drew all her attention away from the movie. Kara looked down, a weirdly sad look on Lena’s face confusing Kara. “Is everything okay, baby?” Kara asked automatically, leaning forward to kiss her forehead.

Lena closed her eyes for a moment, humming softly at the show of affection. “Yeah, I just… You know I think you’re beautiful, right?” The question only confused Kara more. “Uhm… Okay? Why are you saying this?” She didn’t really know what to say to that.

Lena frowned, moving so she was now straddling Kara’s hips, laying on top of her as she wrapped her arms around Kara’s head and pulled her into her chest. Memories of Colorado flooded Kara’s mind, her arms automatically wrapping around Lena’s waist.

“Baby, what’s wrong? What’s making you upset?” Kara shifted so she could talk properly, but refused to let her girlfriend go. “I know you’re really self-conscious about your scars,” Lena mumbled as she nuzzled into Kara’s hair, “But just please know you don’t have to be. I don’t think they’re ugly, or scary, so if you’re worried about my reaction please don’t… I care for you, and your body, and I don’t want you to think you’re somehow ugly. You’re the most beautiful person I know.”

Kara squeezed her eyes shut, refusing to let the tears that burned in her eyes out. So Lena had noticed that she changed in another room… That’s why she had that look on her face when Kara came back. She didn’t care about the scars; only that Kara knew that she could be comfortable around her at all times.

The overwhelming affection that was building up in Kara’s chest was indescribable. There was no way Kara could even fathom to communicate her thoughts, so she settled for pulling slightly away from Lena so she could move upwards and kiss her. The kiss was deep and slow, both of them sighing contently.

Lena shifted slightly as Kara tightened her arms completely around Lena’s waist, smiling into the kiss. Kara wanted her as close as possibly, trying to touch every inch of her body against her own. Lena’s fingernails gently scratched Kara’s scalp as she ran her fingers through her hair, causing Kara to hum contently. 

Despite the passion behind the kiss, they both kept it respectful, neither making a move that would ruin the sweet affection surrounding them. After a few minutes Kara pulled away, her breath slightly labored. “Thank you, Lena,” Kara whispered softly, giving her girlfriend another kiss. Lena smiled against her lips again, pulling away to laugh lightly.

“Let’s get back to the movie?” She suggested, Kara nodding happily. Lena shifted off Kara, still keeping as much contact as possible. She cuddled into her girlfriend’s side, resting her head on Kara’s shoulder as she played the movie.

Everything returned to normal; Lena made small comments on the movie, an easy comfort settling between the 2 women. Kara would sporadically kiss Lena’s temple or hairline though out the movie, Lena smiling against her shoulder each time. It was an easy, relaxed sort of joy that made Kara silently pray that she could keep this happiness for the rest of her life.

**********

Kara sighed heavily, tossing her suit case onto the upholstered bench at the end of the hotel bed. The flight to New York had been exhausting, the airport in both National City and New York full of people traveling to the big city. Kara had to stay on high alert the entire day, keeping Lena close as they tried to get in and out of the airport as quickly as possible.

The private plane had been nice; Lena made sure there were plenty of things to eat and drink as the flew across the continent. There were only the pilots on the plane, along with Kara and Lena, but Kara had to keep reminder herself that even though it felt safe to show any sort of PDA, that didn’t mean it was safe. Kara had no idea if the plane had any sort of cameras that Lillian or someone else could look back at.

Kara took off her suit jacket, tossing it onto the bed as she loosened the collar of her normal button up. There was a soft knock in the adjoining door, Kara smiling; she had made a silent bet with herself that Lena would straight away want the door to be open so they could now properly talk, away from the public eye.

Kara opened the door, playfully leaning her arm high against the doorframe, legs crossing at the ankle. She smiled wide to Lena, who looked amused at her stance. “Fancy meeting you here,” Kara joked in a terrible southern accent.

Lena’s musical laugh bounced off the walls of both hotel rooms, making Kara’s smile grow impossibly wider. Her girlfriend stepped in close, standing up on her toes a little so she could kiss Kara sweetly. “You’re adorable,” Lena mumbled as she pulled away from the brief kiss. Kara found herself wishing for more.

“Did you want to do something today?” Kara asked, pushing back off the doorframe so that Lena could walk into her room. She turned from Lena and started to get more comfortable, untucking her shirt with one hand and opening her suit case with the other. She was tired, but if Lena wanted to go somewhere she would happily oblige.

Lena sighed in disappointment. “I’ve got some work to do, unfortunately… But maybe a little bit later tonight we could go out to dinner? I never got to fulfil my promise of dinner last time we were in New York.” 6 months felt like ages ago to Kara, but considering so much happened between last Christmas and not, it wasn’t surprising.

“That sounds amazing,” Kara grinned to Lena, who returned the smile. “I was thinking of grabbing a shower anyways. Traveling makes me feel kind of dirty.” Lena snorted at the comment, looking amused as she placed the laptop that had been in her hand the entire time on the small table, sitting down to work.

Kara gathered some clothing and stepped into the luxury bathroom. The glass enclosed shower had five different shower heads, and a small shelf full of tiny bottles of different shampoos, conditioners, and body wash.

Starting the water from one of the shower heads, Kara stripped out of her work cloths, lazily tossing them on the floor as she waited for the water to get steaming hot. She sighed as the hot water splashed against her back when she stepped into the shower, the glass already starting to get foggy from the heat.

All the stress that had been resting heavily on Kara’s shoulders melted off as she started to wash her hair with the fancy bath products. They smelt amazing; a mixture of flowers and some sort of sweet smell that Kara couldn’t put her finger on.

Kara only got out of the shower once she started to feel the heat of the water making her a little fatigued and light headed. She wrapped herself in one of the plush towels, and was just about to start combing through her wet hair when she realized that she had left the comb in her suitcase.

Awkwardly, Kara trotted out of the steamy bathroom, trying to ignore the deep blush that was setting across her cheeks. She tried not to make eye contact with Lena when her girlfriend looked up, noticing a look of surprise flashing across her face.

“I forgot something,” Kara admitted as she went to her bag, trying to look through it with one hand while the other desperately clutched at her towel. Lena didn’t say anything, simply leaning back in her seat, pressing a thoughtful hand to her mouth as she watched Kara.

As soon as Kara found her comb she snatched it out of the bag and hurried back into the bathroom, firmly shutting the door. She could have died from embarrassment right then and there. Although it’s not like Lena hadn’t seen her basically naked before; she saw her in the bath when Kara needed help cleaning her stitches and cuts a few weeks ago.

Trying to push through the awkwardness that made Kara’s legs lock up, she started to dry off her hair and comb through it. When she was done she put it up in a tight bun, getting dressed into some more comfortable clothing. She figured she’d change for dinner later.

Gathering all her dirty clothing, Kara once again stepped out into the hotel room, still refusing to look at Lena properly. Lena looked up again, humming in playful disappointment. “Damn… I was hoping you forgot something again.”

Kara’s face once again exploded in a blush, which crawled towards her ears and neck. “Uh… No… Sorry?” She didn’t know why she was apologizing, trying her hardest not to ramble out of embarrassment. Lena gave an alluring chuckle, shifting in her seat to look back down at her computer. “You’re lucky I actually have work to do.”

The comment was spoken under Lena’s voice in a deep, breathy tone that made Kara light headed. If she didn’t lay down now she was afraid she might pass out. Kara quickly tossed her clothing into her suit case and jumping onto the bed, laying long-ways across the bottom of it.

Kara cleared her throat before she spoke, hoping her voice didn’t crack. “Do you mind if I turn on the TV quietly?” She laid on her stomach, looking over to Lena. Kara couldn’t help but notice how much darker Lena’s eyes looked, the emerald color more of a hunter green now. “Do whatever you’d like, baby girl.”

The whimper that started to roll out of Kara’s throat was quickly concealed with a cough, Kara turning away. She sat up to find the remote to the TV, turning it onto a good channel before turning the volume almost to mute. Kara laid back down, resting her head on a pillow she grabbed from the top of the bed.

After the embarrassment from earlier started to fade away, Kara was able to fully relax. Her eye lids started to get heavy as she watched TV, her body limp across the comfortable bed. Kara fought the sleep for a few minutes, but the rhythmic sound of Lena typing, and the quiet show made it impossible to resist.

The sleep wasn’t exactly deep, Kara still vaguely aware of her surroundings as she napped, but it was very restful. She didn’t know how long she slept, or when exactly Lena noticed that she wasn’t awake anymore, but after what felt like a few hours Kara felt a gentle pressure against her back.

If Kara wasn’t aware that she was in a safe space, her instincts would have kicked in straight away, and she would have launched whoever was touching her across the room. However, she instantly knew it was Lena, a sort of comfortable-content feeling spreading warmly through her.

She recognized that Lena was lightly sitting on the small of her back, her hands sliding against her shoulder blades. Kara felt Lena lean forward and press a gentle kiss to her temple, her face still turned sideways as if she was watching the TV.

Kara hummed low in her chest in response to the kiss, groggily grinning. She didn’t open her eyes, simply enjoying the warmth of Lena. “Are you sure you want to go out tonight? We can stay in, if you want.” Kara grunted wordlessly in disagreement. She wanted to go out to dinner with her girlfriend, no matter what.

Lena chuckled at her way of sleepily communicating, pressing another sweet kiss just behind Kara’s ear. Kara sighed and practically melted, feeling Lena’s hands rubbing her back. There was a small part of her that worried that Lena might be able to feel the bumpy scar tissue on her back, but she kept repeating Lena’s words from the night before, trying to put her mind at ease.

They sat like this for a while, Lena gently rubbing all of Kara’s back as she rested, eyes still closed. “Are you done with work?” Kara eventually mumbled half into the pillow she was hugging. Lena confirmed she was done softly, giving Kara another kiss on the back of the shoulder, through her shirt.

“It’s a little after 5, if you’re hungry?” Lena offered, although she made no move to get off her girlfriend. Kara didn’t mind, enjoying the contact too much. “In a bit,” Kara sighed, feeling Lena’s thumbs massaging close to the base, of her spine, right where she sat.

Kara didn’t realize how sore she was until now, feeling all the tight muscles relax as Lena massaged through them. They sat like that for another long while, until eventually Lena was satisfied with her work. She kissed Kara’s cheek and jawline multiple times in a row before sitting up and shifting off of Kara.

With a sigh Kara took that as a sign to start getting ready, groggily standing and moving to her suit case. Lena was already dressed in a formal outfit, seemingly having changed earlier while Kara was napping. Most of Kara’s clothing was luckily formal, so she easily picked out one of her nicer suits.

Kara was just about to take her suit and change in the bathroom, pausing when she remembered Lena’s words again. She was allowed to be comfortable and confident in front of her girlfriend. There was no reason to shy away and hide.

Although it was an internal struggle at first, Kara threw caution to the wind. She laid her outfit across the bed and started to pull her shirt off, trying to keep everything casual by not looking to Lena, who was busy packing up her work stuff on the small circular table.

She noticed Lena glance at her for a split second as she started to walk back into her room, but her eyes didn’t linger, simply glancing away. The casual tone made Kara’s anxiety relax almost straight away, letting out the breath she didn’t know she had been holding.

Now that she knew Lena wasn’t going to do anything to make her feel awkward or uncomfortable, Kara confidently started to change. She was just pulling on her pants, shirt unbuttoned and hanging open, when Lena returned. Again she simply glanced at Kara, a slight gleam of happiness in her eyes knowing that Kara felt a little more comfortable around her.

Kara stood up straight, starting to work on her shirt as she looked up to Lena. “Did you have a place in mind you wanted to go?” Kara asked, adjusting the collar of her shirt before she started to tuck it into her unzipped pants. Lena sat comfortable on the edge of the bed, her eyes remaining on Kara’s face and not her hands.

“I heard Gordon Ramsey’s restaurant is only a few blocks from here. I thought we could walk? To avoid traffic and everything,” Lena suggested, a wide smile crossing over her face. Kara laughed, but agreed, never having imagined that she’d be going to such a famous restaurant with her boss who was also her girlfriend.

Kara agreed, gathering some items before the 2 of them left the hotel. As they left the hotel, Lena pulling up directions on her phone, Kara noticed that the sidewalks weren’t as busy as she thought they were going to be. It was probably still early enough in spring, despite the busy airport, that there weren’t so many tourists walking around.

At first Kara assumed her usual position of walking just in front of Lena, guiding her through the small groups of people. Then she remembered that they were somewhere she could actually relax a little in. Kara slowed her pace to match Lena’s, and casually slipped her hand into her girlfriends. She stood close enough so that if anyone were to look at them, it’d just look like they were walking close together in a semi-crowded area.

In the corner of her eye Kara could see Lena smiling, her fingers tightly intertwining with her girlfriends. They walked down the sidewalk like this for the rest of the way, Kara practically floating on cloud 9 with how wonderful it felt to simply hold Lena’s hand.

Thankfully, since it was the slow tourist season, Lena and Kara were able to get a seat. Lena offered a little bit of cash to the host, requesting a more private table. He happily obliged, taking them to a table in the corner of the restaurant floor, pouring them a glass of water straight away before excusing himself.

The restaurant was still busy, but there were plenty of staff on hand to deal with the overwhelming numbers. The volume of conversation was respectful, allowing Kara to be able to hear Lena as she started to talk about how she was doing some research on the museum they were going to tomorrow.

They had planned on going to the museum in the late afternoon, so they could explore all the exhibits before the meeting. Kara still had to act as Lena’s body guard during that time, so she was going to dress much like she was dressed now, but Lena had off-handedly mentioned how she was going to keep her outfit a secret as she spoke about the museum.

Kara smirked, trying to get information about what exactly she was going to change into after they explored the museum, her curiosity peaked. All Lena would give her, however, was that it was a dress. Kara scoffed at the vague description, but decided to not ruin the surprise for herself.

Throughout the conversation a waitress came over and took the girls order, Lena asking for a glass of wine with her steak. Kara was half tempted to order some wine as well, but decided that she should still stay sober for her job. Even if it felt like a vacation, Kara was still there for work reasons.

The night moved on with happy, light conversation. Kara felt comfortable enough to gently play with Lena’s hand while they waited for their food, simply gliding her fingertips across her skin. Lena was leaned forward against her elbow, resting her chin on a raised palm as she casually spoke with a smile.

Kara only pulled away when she noticed the waitress returning with their food after a little while. The food was amazing, just as Kara had expected. She silently wondered if she could recreate both of their meals back at home, making a mental list of what looked to be on Lena’s plate, as well as her own.

The rest of the night was relaxing, filled with laughter and affection. Once the 2 women finished their meal, they made their way back to the hotel room. They finished off their night with a movie like usual, Lena falling asleep before the movie even ended. Kara didn’t mind, holding her close as she got a little more comfortable in bed. She fell asleep smiling, excited for tomorrow.

**********

They walked into the Museum of Modern Art, Kara holding the door open for Lena. The building was a large, modern structure that had a warm interior. It was very open, with white walls and simple circular pillars. Kara got their tickets, Lena looking at a brochure that had a list of the exhibits and a map on it. 

Lena suggested they start with the first exhibit, although she looked excited about a few of the artwork in some of the later areas. Kara walked close to Lena, both looking at the artwork as they stepped into the first exhibit, and looking for anyone who seemed like a threat. Even if they weren’t in National City she still had to protect Lena.

They both took their time looking at each painting, reading the small plaque that listed the piece, the artist, and a small description of the artist’s reasoning behind the artwork. Kara studied The City Rises by Umberto Boccioni for a few minutes, trying to make scenes of the wild waves of reds and blues, and blur of people.

There were multiple famous pieces of work that Kara recognized, such as Dali’s The Persistence of Memory, and Warhol’s Campbell’s Soup Cans. Kara quietly mentioned to Lena about how she had always loved Andy Warhol’s piece with Marilyn Monroe. 

They moved on through the exhibits, and although the museum wasn’t as beautiful as Palazzo Colonna with its classical art and golden pillars, but it had its own sort of modern beauty to it. Every room was designed with a sort of artistic twist, some rooms more simplistic than others.

Finally, they reached the exhibit that Kara was most excited for; Vincent Van Gogh. It took everything in Kara not to hurry forward into the section of the gallery containing Starry Night, knowing that she had to keep watch over Lena.

Thankfully, her girlfriend was able to feel the excitement radiating off of her, seeing her eyes locked onto the famous painting as they walked in. “Go on, I’ll follow you this time,” Lena whispered with a giggle, not wanting to disturb the other guests.

With Lena’s go-ahead, Kara took wide strides towards Starry Night, standing as close as she could without risking getting in trouble. Her eyes danced across the visible brush strokes, the color dotted across the canvas with precise, deliberate meaning. Each part of the painting was supposed to be there, proudly displayed on the wall.

Kara studied the painting for a very long time, looking at every square inch of the artwork. Lena glanced between the painting and Kara’s face, smiling wide. Kara didn’t even know she was smiling herself until she looked down to meet Lena’s gaze, her excitement mirrored in her girlfriends face.

“This is so cool!” Kara whisper-yelled, practically jumping up and down. Lena giggled, visibly holding back the urge to kiss her girlfriend. “I’m glad you love it so much… Is Van Gogh your favorite artist?” Kara nodded, glancing around the room. She guided Lena over to Van Gogh’s one ear portrait, looking at it as she spoke.

“I think one of the things I love about Van Gogh is that, even though his art was considered terrible in his time, he still kept painting. He did what he loved, even if no one else loved it with him. It made him happy, even with his mental illness.” Kara felt Lena gently brush her fingers against the back of her relaxed hand, smiling at the sweet gesture.

They spent a while in the Vincent Van Gogh section of the museum, but eventually Kara allowed them to move on. They started to make their way to the end of the tour, noticing that it was almost time for the gala in a reserved section of the museum. They looked at the last few pieces of art up until they absolutely had to leave, Kara having to walk Lena back to the car to grab the outfit she needed to change into.

Lena grabbed the dress, which was concealed in a bag, from their rented car. She took Kara over to the bathrooms, stepping into the large stall while Kara waited outside. The bathrooms were empty, so Kara spoke casually about some of the art pieces they had looked at.

She was leaning casually against the sink counter, crossing her arms and legs at the ankle. She was looking down, pulling off a piece of lint from her pants when she heard Lena come out of the stall. When Kara looked up, her eyes meeting Lena’s form, her brain squealed to a stop. She completely forgot how to breath, eyes going wide.

The smooth silk fabric hugged every single one of Lena’s hour glass curves, accentuating her trim waist and wide hips. The dress dipped low in the front, showing a beautiful amount of cleavage, Kara’s mouth practically watering. There was a long slit up the side that stopped mid-thigh, Kara silently wishing it went up higher.

The dress had a sort of cape attached around Lena’s shoulders, and long pointed bands that looked like gloves without the actual glove part. A sort of golden wire was sewn around the bodice of the dress, looking like some sort of intricate armor. Lena’s raven hair had been pulled from its bun and expertly styled, velvet waves rolling down behind Lena’s shoulders.

She looked like a queen- no, a goddess! Lena had put on fresh crimson lipstick to match her crimson dress. God how badly Kara wanted to see how much lipstick she could kiss off of those perfect lips.

Kara realized that she had just been simply staring at Lena with a completely slack jaw, lips parted in awe as she held her breath. With an odd sort of jerky movement, Kara stood up straight, pushing off the sink. “Holy crap,” Kara whispered under her breath, moving close to Lena, who was smiling at her.

“You are the most beautiful woman I have ever seen,” Kara whispered as she reached forward, splaying her hands across Lena’s sides. They were alone and there were no camera’s in the bathroom, so Kara felt no hesitation as she bent down and kissed her girlfriend.

Lena instantly reached up and wrapped her arms around Kara’s neck, kissing her back with vigor and passion. The momentum of the kiss carried Lena backwards until Kara pressed her against the outside wall of the bathroom stall.

Neither of them cared if this messed up Lena’s hair or make-up, moving quickly and deeply against one another. Kara’s fingers dug gently into Lena’s hips, reveling in the sigh that her girlfriend let out from the sensation.

Screw that they were in a bathroom, and screw that Kara should probably be careful not to wrinkle Lena’s dress. Her hands slid backwards and down, grabbing two handfuls of Lena’s ass. The gasp that her girlfriend let out ended in a breathy moan, a wave of heat rolling down Kara’s spine at the sound.

She almost didn’t stop when she heard the bathroom door push open- there was a small hallway the person had to walk through before they turned into the main area of the bathroom, so they didn’t see Kara and Lena straight away –but in a reluctant move she pulled away from Lena, side stepping and walking into the large stall Lena had come out of.

She closed the door quickly, seeing Lena’s crimson heals stepping away from the stall over towards the row of sinks outside. Kara stepped in front of her own sink, running the water and scrubbing off the crimson lipstick that was smeared across her lips.

Kara glanced into the mirror, seeing that her face was red and her bright blue eyes were now a sort of navy color. She dipped her face down and splashed water across it, sucking in a quick breath at the cold sensation.

After taking her hair down from its bun, fixing it and putting it back up, Kara finally dried off her face and stepped out of the stall. By now Lena had fixed her hair and make-up, just putting the tube of lipstick away in her small purse, where she had concealed her previous outfit.

She made silent eye contact with Kara through the mirror, a hidden smirk gleaming in her eyes. Kara tried not to bite her lip as she motioned for Lena to follow her out of the bathroom. The woman who had walked into the bathroom- Kara hadn’t see who it was –didn’t seem to notice anything had been happening moments before.

The 2 women walked out of the restroom as if nothing had happened, Kara leading Lena through the hallways until they reached the gala. It was a large open room with temporary walls set up all around, artwork scattered across the walls in a sort of make-shift gallery.

There were quite a lot of people around, most of them important business people talking in groups. There was a long line of tables adorned with extravagant food, Kara realizing how hungry she was. As they walked around, they had switched dynamics so now Lena was leading, and Kara was following closely behind.

The first person Lena went to was Cat Grant, who wore a beautiful cream covered gown. Kara couldn’t help but think that it wasn’t nearly as beautiful as Lena’s, but she knew she was probably biased. Cat greeted Lena happily; they had gotten close over the past 6 months, both their companies working together the most.

“Lena, how good to see you! I’m so glad you could make it,” Cat called, outstretching a hand. Lena returned the greeting, shaking her hand. Cat introduced Lena to the group of people she had been talking to, taking control of the conversation like usual. Cat Grant rivaled Lena in how authoritative she could be, although Kara found Lena to be more intimidating.

The meeting was boring, full of a bunch of business owners and investors talking about the same thing over and over again. Kara was silent the entire time, except for when she had to firmly push back a drunk investor who tried to hug Lena, telling him off with curt words.

She felt Lena’s hand brush against the small of her back as a sort of thanks when she went to stand back in her place just behind her girlfriend, repressing the grin that threatened to spread across her face. She stood a little taller, proud that she could protect the woman she cared about.

At one point Lena stepped away from the chatter of Cat’s group, going over to the table of food. She gathered a small plate, but instead of going over to the gathering of tables that had been set up to sit down at, she moved to walk over to an empty balcony.

Kara followed her without question, realizing that she was taking them to an area where no one could see or watch them. “Here, eat something. I have a feeling we’re going to be here for a while.” Lena smiled at Kara as she instantly took a small little finger sandwich, hungrily eating it. She also ate some of the food, looking out over the city street they stood over.

It was nice to sort of relax a little, although Kara kept glancing around them to make sure no one walked onto the balcony. They finished the plate of food slowly, enjoying the alone time. Eventually, though, they had to return to the party.

Lena threw away the disposable plate before she made her way back to the group she had been talking to the entire night. Again the delved into topics that Kara could hardly follow, so she resorted to just glancing around the room like normal.

After another long while Cat Grant stepped away from the group, going to the front of the room with a microphone. She gave a speech, thanking all of the people involved in their most recent experiments. She listed off the names of each company, thanking them personally. Everyone clapped for each name, although Kara kept her hands at her side.

Once the speech was over, the party started to die down a little. There were a few people who had drunk a little too much, but it seemed like everyone was starting to get tired. The crowed started to thin, the group Cat and Lena stood with losing a member every 30 to 45 minutes.

Eventually Lena found it acceptable to also excuse herself for the night. “I’ll see you tomorrow, Ms. Grant. This gala was lovely, thank you for hosting it,” Lena politely smiled. Cat shook her hand again, saying her good byes before allowing Lena to leave.

It was almost midnight as Kara walked Lena back to the rental car, feeling exhausted. As Kara got into the driver’s side, having already helped Lena into the car, she let out a long sigh. Lena hummed in amused agreement, bending forward to pull of her heals. Her feet must have been dying that entire time.

They were quiet as Kara drove them through the city traffic, Lena leaning her head on Kara’s shoulder as they held hands across the center consol. Kara glanced down at Lena, kissing the crown of her head while they were stopped at a red light. “You still look beautiful, by the way,” Kara mumbled against Lena’s hair, pulling away when she noticed the light turn green.

She could feel Lena smile against her shoulder, her hand squeezing Kara’s. When they got back to the hotel, parking in a designated parking garage, Kara stepped out to open Lena’s door. They continued to walk at an appropriate distance, Kara leading them through the hotel and up to their rooms. To keep anyone from suspecting anything, Kara had made a policy that they always leave and enter through their own rooms; they were to never leave together.

Lena wordlessly stepped into her own room, Kara waiting for the door to close before she unlocked her own door. She hadn’t even closed the door all the way before the adjoining door opened, and Lena walked into Kara’s room.

They grinned to one another, Kara unbuttoning her suit jacket and tossing it across her suit case as she usually did. “What would you like for me to put on?” Kara asked, unbuttoning her collar with one hand, and turning the TV on with the other.

When Lena didn’t answer straight away, Kara turned to look at her, pausing when she noticed Lena’s eyes locked on the hand unbuttoning her shirt. Oh…. _Oh_. So that’s what she wanted. 

Trying to hide her deep swallow, Kara casually tossed the remote back onto the bed. She pulled her shirt out of her pants, and returned to unbuttoning her shirt as she slowly walked over to Lena, who still watched her. Even with the TV screen being the only major source of light in the room, Kara could still see the dark want in her eyes.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Kara undid the last button right as she reached Lena, pulling the shirt open slightly as she stepped into her girlfriend’s space. Lena’s eyes were dancing all across her torso; she looked at the dip of Kara’s cleavage in her navy and white bra, trailing down to the unfairly defined abs.

It became solidified in Kara’s mind that they were actually doing what she thought they were doing when she felt Lena’s blazing hands reach forward and spread across her midriff. The heat that had settled low in her belly from earlier that day was rekindled into a roaring fire.

Kara bit her lip, feeling Lena’s hands moving across her stomach, up towards her ribs. She remembered Colorado, and how Lena had touched her bruised skin. If she thought that felt good, it was nothing compared to now. There was no guilt or repressed feelings attached to this sensation.

Feeling Lena’s hands wrap around the sides of her ribs, she decided to move on her own. Taking a hand, she gently pressed a curled finger against the underside of Lena’s chin. She lifted up, so Lena was looking up at her.

The 2 of them were silent as Kara leaned forward, pressing her lips passionately against Lena’s. Screw the fact that she was still wearing that messy lipstick; Kara wanted to see that crimson color painted across her skin.

Lena’s fingertip’s brushed across the band of Kara’s bra, goosebumps spreading across her arms and spine. With a pleased sigh, Kara gently started to walk backwards, her fingers pressing against the back of Lena’s neck so she followed her.

Kara didn’t stop backing up until she felt the side of the bed press against the back of her thighs. She pulled away from the kiss to sit down heavily, now eye level with the metal accent that lined the neckline of Lena’s dress.

She didn’t go straight for the exposed skin, however. Instead, she dragged the hand that was still resting against Lena’s neck, trailing it down the edge of her dress, across the side of her dress, and rested it on the dip of her waist.

Kara’s other hand reached down, starting at Lena’s knee and gliding up. Her fingers dipped into the slit on the side of the dress, touching the burning hot skin of Lena’s thigh. When she reached the top of the slit, she continued to push up. The fabric gathered around her hand, rising until Kara could feel and see the thin, strappy black lace of Lena’s panties.

She simultaneously moved her head and hand forward, lips lightly brushing just along the top seam of Lena’s neckline. Her hand had now moved into the dress, wrapping around to grab Lena’s ass much like she had done earlier that night.

Lena gasped at both the sensation of Kara’s hand and lips. Her hands dipped into Kara’s collar, moving along the top of her shoulders, pushing the fabric off of them. Kara kissed her skin again, her lips lingering half a second longer. She constantly glanced up to Lena, making sure there was no sense of hesitation or disapproval in her eyes.

The way Lena gently bit her bottom lip, watching Kara with a dark gaze spurred her to keep going. She moved her hand that had been resting on her waist, reaching back and upwards until she could feel the zipper of Lena’s dress.

Kara was silently surprised to see that she was able to pull the zipper completely down to Lena’s tail bone with one hand, sucking in a deep breath when she felt Lena’s fingernails digging into the tops of her shoulder in anticipation.

Despite the zipper being all the way down, Kara didn’t remove the dress straight away; she wanted Lena to do that when she felt ready. So instead, she pulled her hands away and started to remove her top completely.

Lena leaned back slightly, her eyes moving from Kara’s face to her body, studying every curve of each muscle with a hungry look. Kara noticed her thick swallow before she bent forward, Kara instinctively tilting her head up to meet Lena’s lips.

They kissed deeply, much like how they had in the restroom. Kara had leaned back, resting all her weight on her hands behind her. Lena’s hands danced some more across Kara’s stomach, fingernails dragging against her sensitive sides.

Kara couldn’t have stopped the breath moan that escaped from her chest even if she wanted to. She felt Lena’s lips pause against her own, pulling away an inch to look at Kara’s flushed face. Her hands had frozen at the noise, but resumed their movements, watching Kara’s face.

She found the sensitive spot right along Kara’s ribs again, making her eyes flutter shut, head tilting back and back arching slight as she gasped out another moan. Kara’s heart was hammering in her chest, and cold goosebumps exploded across her skin when she opened her eyes and saw the look of pure arousal in her girlfriends face.

Lena stood straight again, reaching up to the neckline of her dress. She pulled it slowly off her shoulders, making a show out of removing the clothing. Kara watched, still leaning back on her hands, her mouth watering all over again at the slowly exposed skin.

The dress dropped to the ground without a sound, only a quiet wisp of air. Kara’s eyes didn’t know what they wanted to look at first; The practically see-through black lace bra, the toned stomach and curvy hips, or the endless legs.

She was just about to lean forward to take Lena in her arms when suddenly Lena shoved her down against the bed with a hand. It was a gentle push more than anything, but it took Kara off guard. She let out a quiet, “Mmph,” watching Lena move to prowl over her.

Kara scooted backwards a little, so that Lena could actually get on the bed, and not have to balance on the edge. Lena followed her, her black hair dangling over one shoulder. It caught the light just right, shining beautifully against the glow of the TV.

They both paused, staring at one another for a long moment. Lena looked breath taking, her beautiful green eyes moving all around Kara’s face. “This is okay, right?” Lena asked, sending a swell of affection into Kara’s chest for the hundredth time that day.

“This is perfect,” Kara whispered back, sitting up to capture Lena’s lips with her own. Once again they were locked into a kiss of passion, Kara darting her tongue against Lena’s bottom lip. Lena grinned against her, hands pressing politely into the bed on either side of Kara’s head.

They kissed for a long time, but the burning low in Kara’s hips was starting to become distracting. Her hands, which had been resting on Lena’s hips, started to move against her. She reached for her new favorite place on Lena’s body, squeezing her rear tightly.

Lena gasped softly into Kara’s mouth, her heart skipping a beat. She squeezed again, dragging her fingernails against the base of Lena’s spine. She let out another gasp, her back arching at the sensation of Kara’s nails.

The heat of Lena’s hips pressing into Kara’s was exhilarating, Kara digging her nails in just a little more. Lena shifted her weight onto one hand, the other moving to palm Kara through her bra. The sudden sensation making Kara gasp.

Lena smiled into the kiss, pulling away to lean into Kara’s blushing ear. “See baby? I can do it, too,” she whispered in an alluring tone. The voice mixed with the cocky smile on Lena’s face as she moved to look Kara in the face took her breath away. Her jaw dropped slightly, eyes wide as she looked at the near black eyes of her girlfriend.

In a blur of movement, Kara wrapped her arm around Lena’s waist and flipped them. Lena hit the bed with a grunt, her arms instinctively wrapping around Kara’s neck as she hovered over her. Kara smirked at the shocked look on Lena’s face.

If she was going to tease, then so was Kara. She bent forward, returning her lips to Lena’s for only a few moments. She moved to kiss the corner of Lena’s mouth, then her cheek, then her jawline. She nipped lightly at the corner of Lena’s jaw, smirking as she felt Lena pushing her hips against hers.

Kara played with her girlfriend’s chest through her thin bra, massaging her breast as her lips trailed lower. Lena moaned low, her fingers squeezing Kara’s shoulder and the back of her neck. Kara kissed down her neck, giving testing nips and bites.

“Be careful… Baby… M-marks,” Lena panted, giving a breathy moan when Kara gently bit the crook of her neck. She hummed to Lena, showing her acknowledgement; it was smart to keep away from making visible marks… But that didn’t mean she couldn’t mark lower.

Kara went down to Lena’s shoulder, biting a little more roughly. Lena seemed to enjoy the feeling of her girlfriend’s teeth, moaning breathily, her hips pushing aggressively up into Kara. The sensation almost made Kara give up her quest and just jump to what she wanted to do most, but each moan Lena let out sent a rush of addicting arousal that settled low in Kara’s hips.

She went lower, and lower, biting and sucking hickies into Lena’s ivory skin. By the time she got to the top of Lena’s breast, Kara’s hand still working over the lace lingerie, Lena was softly moaning and gasping with each kiss and nip.

But finally- oh my god finally –Kara reached where she wanted to be most in that moment. She relaxed her hand that played with Lena’s chest, planting soft, sweet kisses along the top of the bra. She was giving her girlfriend a short break, feeling her fingers relax from their death grip against her neck and shoulder.

Kara just gave little kisses for about 5 minutes, waiting for Lena’s breathing to slow so she wasn’t hyperventilating. She pulled away, looking up at the hazy look on Lena’s face. “Ready?” Kara asked softly, both hands resting against the bed.

Lena swallowed hard, taking a deep breath and nodding. Kara smiled, slowly and passionately kissing her for a moment before pulling away. She instructed her to sit up a bit, reaching behind Lena and undoing the clasp on her bra.

Feeling the band relax against her skin, Lena heavily fell back to the bed, lifting her arms when Kara instructed. The bra was removed, revealing already erect and rosy nipples. Kara licked her lips, looking as if she was staring at a 5 course meal.

She started off slow, kissing along to tops of Lena’s breasts lightly. Then she started to circle her way around towards the center, pausing to suck light marks into her pale skin. Lena’s breath started to pick up again, feeling Kara’s nose brush against her nipple.

Her tongue followed shortly, laving slowly upwards across the erect little bud. Lena let out a long, soft moan, her hands moving to guide Kara’s head back towards the center. Kara smiled and didn’t fight her, clasping her mouth onto the nipple gently.

She sucked, moving the flat of her tongue along Lena’s nipple. She listened to her girlfriend let out even more moans, reveling in the beautiful sound. Lena’s hands left the sides of her face, instead moving to grip the sheets above her.

Lena arched her back into Kara’s mouth, her hips starting to shift and lift up again. Kara let go of the breast with a popping sound, but didn’t wait long to move to the other breast. She repeated her actions, starting off slow before fully taking Lena into her mouth.

Kara could have done this for hours; kissing, licking, and sucking as Lena writhed under her. Lena started to moan praises, one of her grasping hands moving to splay across Kara’s spine, right between her shoulder blades.

For a split second Kara felt self-conscious, knowing Lena could feel the bumps and ridges of her scars. Lena had no reaction, though, just digging her nails into the skin like normal. The lack of reaction was comforting, and Kara found herself able to completely focus on her lover once again.

The dampness that was starting to rub against Kara’s navel was what made her finally start to move down. She kissed each breast a few more times before she kissed along Lena’s sternum. Kara sucked a few more marks, making them much a much deeper red and purple as she made her way down to Lena’s hips.

She reached the lacy top of Lena’s panties, nipping along them. “Kara,” Lena moaned after an extra sharp bite. Kara looked up, cockily raising her eyebrow and humming. Lena turned her head to look down at her girlfriend, panting heavily.

“… Don’t make me beg,” Lena whimpered, trying to take her cheek and guide her down to where she wanted most. Kara smirked, taking Lena by the wrist and pulling her hand way. She kissed her palm before holding it firmly against the bed.

“But what if begging is what will get you what you want?” Kara quirked her eyebrow, her smirk growing at the look of aroused torture on Lena’s face. She planted another firm kiss right on the inside of her thigh just to drive the point home.

Thankfully- for Kara, at least –Lena was stubborn, refusing to say the magic words that would get Kara to do what she wanted her to do. Content with just continuing on like this, Kara started to work on Lena’s thighs, sucking more marks into the pale skin.

Lena was now starting to arch her back, legs spreading the higher Kara got. At one point Kara even pushed her panties to the side just a bit to kiss and bit the inner apex of her thigh. Lena let out a slew of disgruntle curse words, frustration dripping from each word.

Kara couldn’t help but chuckle low in her chest, looking up at her lover. “You know how to make this stop,” She huskily told her. She wanted to hear the side of Lena only she got to hear; the vulnerable, powerless side. She wasn’t going to be CEO Lena; she was going to be _Kara’s Lena_.

Of course she didn’t say the magic words straight away, so Kara just kept teasing her. At one point she even sat up to pull off her panties, tossing them off the bed. Kara had to stop herself from looking down, able to see the glisten even in the low light. If she looked down now, she’d lose all composure and jump straight to eating Lena out.

Instead, she started to play with her hands, dragging her fingers dangerously close to where Lena wanted her more. Kara drew her fingernails down the inside of her thigh, causing Lena to shudder with a gasp.

Kara moved to lean arrogantly over her girlfriend, one hand resting just above Lena’s clit, the other pressed into the bed. “You’re making this much harder than it has to be, baby girl,” Kara whispered, her thumb rubbing back and forth _just_ above Lena.

There was a pause where Lena visibly determined if she wanted to continue being stubborn or not. The determined look on Kara’s face, however, seemed to make her think differently. She reached up and pulled Kara down by the neck.

They kissed slow and deep, Kara momentarily surprised by the action. She moved her lips slow, reveling in the softness of her girlfriend. After a few moments Lena pulled away half an inch. “Please, Kara,” she whispered breathily, giving her a quick peck to really drive it home, “I want you to fuck me.”

Kara had to fight through the sudden cloud of arousal that threatened to fog up her brain. With the submission of power, Kara finally moved her hand down. Her thumb swirled thickly through the dripping cum that glistened in the low TV light, biting back her own moan at how hot it was against her skin.

Lena gasped, her dark green eyes fluttering closed and her jaw dropping. Kara moved her thumb up, using the gathered arousal to swirl around Lena’s clit. Watching her girlfriend instantly start to writhe and moan under her touch was unworldly.

Kara dug her own fingers into the comforter of the bed, breathing in sharply as she watched Lena make an erotic face. She leaned down and sweetly kissed the skin in front of Lena’s ear before whispering, “You’re such a good girl, baby.”

Lena turned quickly, capturing Kara’s lips with hers and a passionate kiss. She moaned into her girlfriend’s mouth, tongue laving against Kara’s. Sweat started to prickle against Kara’s spine, not from exhaustion, but because Lena was giving off so much heat.

Her back arched and her hips bucked as Kara continued to swipe quick, tight circles on her clit. She could feel the little bundle of nerves under her thumb pad, loving the sensation. She could feel Lena starting to get more and more restless, having to pull away from the passionate kiss to catch her breath.

Kara quietly wondered if she could replace her thumb with her tongue, but just before she made the move Lena reached down to grip her wrist so tight it was almost painful. “Oh god- fuck! Kara, don’t stop… For the love of god _please_ don’t stop.”

At the encouragement, Kara kept her pace exactly how it was, refusing to move her thumb from Lena’s clit. “I promise, baby,” Kara whispered, but she wasn’t sure if Lena could hear her over her own loud breathing and moaning.

It only took a few more swipes of her thumb before Kara was able to watch Lena come completely undone. Her back arched, chest high in the air as her shoulders pushed back into the bed. The look on her face as her jaw dropped and her eyebrows furrowed practically made Kara finish with her.

Lena moaned loud, not bothering to keep her voice down. She held her position for a long while, but eventually started to calm down. Kara worked her through the orgasm the entire time, keeping her pace mildly slow and firm. She didn’t stop until Lena fell back onto the bed, panting heavily.

Kara smiled at her handy work, glancing down to the beautiful wetness between Lena’s legs as she pulled her hand away. Kara shifted out from between her girlfriend’s legs, laying down on her side next to her. She propped her head on a bent arm, slowly dragging her fingertips across the dip of her hips.

After a few minutes Kara pressed a kiss against Lena’s temple, her girlfriends breathing now returning to a more natural pace. Kara stood and trotted to the mini fridge that was kept in the room. She grabbed one of the complimentary waters and a cup, pouring a large glass of water before returning to Lena.

“Here, drink something, baby,” Kara offered the cup, sitting with her leg tucked under her on the edge of the bed. Lena groggily opened her eyes, smiling as she sat up. Her raven hair was a mess, pushed up oddly in the back. It was cute, making Kara smile affectionately.

As Lena thanked Kara, drinking her cup of water Kara took a few sips from the bottle. Lena was still completely naked, looking beautiful in the low light of the room. Kara still had her pants and bra on, feeling comfortable without her shirt.

She got up for a moment, removing all the clothing that hadn’t made it off the bed yet. She also found the remote, moving to switch the TV channel onto something they’d both like. Lena watched her quietly, that dark look in her eyes still not going away.

Kara crawled back into bed, Lena shifting to lay properly with her head against the mountain of pillows. She didn’t get under the blankets, however, still laying naked. “Do you need anything else?” Kara asked, reaching the top of the bed, laying on her side to face Lena once again.

“Yeah… Lay down on your back,” Lena instructed, authority dripping from her voice. Any sort of dominant energy that Kara had melted away, realizing that Lena wasn’t done like she thought she was. Obediently, Kara rolled over so she was on her back, Lena moving to hover above her.

She started to undo Kara’s belt, her dark green eyes flickering from what her hands were doing to Kara’s face. She bent forward, hovering her lips above her girlfriend’s ear. “You’re lucky I’m feeling nice tonight… Otherwise I’d pay you back for making me beg like that,” Lena whispered in a dominant tone, nipping at Kara’s ear lobe roughly.

Kara gasped, arching her back slightly in shock. Lena didn’t even pull her belt out of the loops, instead just pushing her pants off completely. Kara laid there in her bra and boxer brief’s, breathe already heavy in anticipation.

“So instead of you begging,” Lena spoke firmly, “I’ll just make it so that if you remove your hands from above your head, then I’m going to stop.” The blush that was spreading across Kara’s cheeks melted down across the tops of her breasts.

She stared at Lena for a moment, her girlfriend glancing at her hands before raising an eyebrow. “So?... Are you going to do as I say?” Kara felt like she raised her arms above her head a little too quickly, but Lena seemed to find it amusing. She smirked down at Kara, moving to sit fully against her hips. Kara could feel how wet she still was, even through her boxers. For a split second Kara wondered how good it would feel to have Lena riding her like this.

The thought was quickly ignored as Kara watched Lena give the most arousing smirk she had ever seen. “You’re such a good girl,” Lena said so softly that it was almost a whisper. Kara’s breath caught in her lungs as she stared up at Lena with wide eyes. Already she was hating this rule of keeping her arms above her head, wanting to touch her girlfriend.

Lena finally leaned down, kissing along Kara’s collar bone. She also kept to the rule of no visible marks, moving a little bit lower before she started to bite and suck at Kara’s skin. The tingling sensation that spread across Kara’s skin felt like an electric shock, causing her to gasp.

Lena seemed to be a little more impatient than Kara had been. She continued to nip at the tops of Kara’s breasts, simultaneously reaching around to undo her bra. Kara was already struggling to keep her breathe calm, watching Lena hungrily stare down at her.

She reached forward with both hands, cupping Kara completely. Lena squeezed and massaged, her palms rubbing against Kara’s skin. Both of them could feel Kara’s nipples start to stiffen, Kara having to grab at the pillows above her to keep her hands still. God she wanted to take Lena’s hips and guide her to start grinding against her stomach.

After Lena was satisfied with using both hands, she removed tone and replaced it with her mouth. Her tongue was burning hot against Kara’s equally as hot skin. The texture of her tongue made Kara’s eyes flutter closed, chest arching into her girlfriend’s mouth.

The hand still holding Kara’s other breast shifted so Lena’s thumb was rolling around against her nipple. Kara’s grip got tighter on the pillows. If she couldn’t guide Lena’s hips to grind against her, then she could grind her own hips against Lena.

Kara lifted her pelvis up and started to move rhythmically. Lena gasped, pulling her mouth away from Kara to look up at her. She bit her lip, returning Lena’s eye contact as she continued to move her hips. She wasn’t breaking Lena’s one rule, so it wasn’t like Lena could punish her.

With a particularly firm roll of Kara’s hips, Lena moaned breathily. The hand not playing with Kara’s nipple pushed heavily into the bed, fingers gripping the duvet tightly. Lena couldn’t help but start to roll her hips along Kara’s, the wetness soaking through her boxers growing.

Lena returned her mouth to Kara’s nipple, doubling her effort; she didn’t want her own pleasure to distract from Kara’s. Both women now moaned loudly, Lena starting to move her hips a little faster as Kara ground up against her.

Feeling Lena’s hips starting to twitch and buck as another slow, rolling orgasm wracked her body was heavenly. Lena had to pull away from Kara’s chest, panting and moaning as now both hands dug into the sheets.

Kara smiled up at her lover, admiring her handy work above her. Lena rolled through her climax, eventually slowing. As she finished, bare chest heaving in the darkness, she looked down at Kara with a playfully irritated look. “Fuck you,” Lena mumbled, as if her orgasm had been reluctant.

“Hm, I think that’s the point?” Kara playfully said, teeth gleaming as she smirked. She might be willing to let Lena top her, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t going to be a brat about it. Lena’s nose flared, her eyes now black as her pupils dilated in arousal.

She took another eyeful of Kara underneath her before she stood up on her knees. Lena got off of Kara only for a second, pulling her boxers off in one quick motion. She returned to her straddling position, bending over Kara so their faces were inches apart.

“Keep those arms above you,” Lena reminded Kara, as if she could have forgotten her one very important rule. Kara nodded, licking her lower lip in anticipation. She could feel the cool air of the hotel room between her legs, and it made her antsy.

Lena propped her weight up on one hand while the other reached down between them. Kara could feel Lena’s fingers brush through the coarse stripe of blonde hair, taking in a deep breath right before she felt two fingers dip through her.

Trying not to unravel and moan straight away, Kara clenched her jaw, biting back a moan. Lena smirked, knowing what she was trying to do. She seemed to visibly make it her goal to get Kara to let out her voice.

Swirling her fingers though Kara’s cum, she moved up to glide up and down against her clit. The bundle of nerves pressed perfectly in the crack between Lena’s two fingers, pure pleasure spiking through Kara’s hips. Kara couldn’t help but toss her head back, letting out a short sigh. “Fuck,” Kara whispered so quietly Lena could hardly hear her.

Lena bent forward, her lips brushing Kara’s ear. “Come on, baby… Let me hear that beautiful voice.” Her pace got slightly faster, putting the perfect amount of pressure against Kara. Fuck, she wanted to move her arms so badly. She kept them high above her head, however, stretching out so she was touching the head board with her palms.

Another spike of pleasure bolted through Kara, and this time she decided to give Lena what she wanted. She moaned low and loud. Lena was still leaned forward, so Kara decided to sweetly kiss the corner of her jaw. Lena backed up slightly, still keeping her perfect pace.

The playful, dominant look in her eyes faded to one of caring affection. She smiled down to Kara, bending forward and kissing her. She reached up and grabbed one of Kara’s hand, guiding her to rest her hand against the small of her back. She didn’t even have to guide the other, Kara automatically following it to rest together.

She hugged Lena close, kissing her deeply as wave after wave of pleasure rolled through her hips like a gentle tide. Occasionally Kara had to pull away, turning her head against the pillows, eyebrows furrowing as she let out a slew of gasps and moans.

Having Lena’s hand between her legs felt indescribable. Kara remembered her fantasy back in Colorado, wondering what Lena’s tongue would feel like. She couldn’t find the words to direct her lover, however, her chest heaving as she struggled to breath.

After a few minutes of Lena working Kara up, she finally crashed over the edge. The small waves of pleasure turned into a full on tsunami. Kara’s arms tightened around Lena, her nails digging into the back of her shoulders as blinding stars burst through her vision.

Her jaw dropped in a silent moan that had caught in her chest, back arching high off the bed as her thighs trembled with wave after roaring wave of pleasure. Kara was briefly aware that Lena was whispering encouragements, her chest warming with affection at how amazing it sounded to hear Lena call her a good girl.

Kara had lost track of time, feeling the orgasm wreck through her body until it faded out to a throb that matched her heart beat. Much like Kara had done previously, Lena didn’t remove her hand from between her legs until she was certain Kara was finished.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lena slid off of Kara, rolling to the other side of the bed, where they had left their waters. She grabbed the bottle, gently offering it to Kara whose body felt so heavy she could hardly move. Still, she managed to lift her arm and take the water, returning Lena’s sweet smile.

They rehydrated, Kara starting to move off of her back, trying to find her tossed underwear and bra; she didn’t like sleeping completely nude, preferring just a little bit of covering. Lena also looked around for her clothing, finding the panties and matching bra on the ground.

Once both women were ‘dressed’ they returned to bed. Kara removed the thick duvet, placing it in a pile on the floor. “Can I use the blanket in your room?” Kara asked Lena, who was putting her hair up in a messy bun. She agreed with a nod, starting to snuggle under the sheets.

It didn’t take long for Kara to wrangle the extra blanket, throwing it over their bed in her room as she returned. Once everything was all set, Kara crawled into bed with Lena, who snuggled close. She was still extremely warm, but that didn’t stop her from practically laying on Kara.

“Good night, beautiful,” Kara whispered, kissing Lena’s forehead. As she relaxed, Kara could feel the slight fatigue in her muscles. It was a good sort of fatigue that made her smile at the reasoning behind it. “Sleep well, baby,” Lena whispered back, already starting to fall asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For those who read it; let me know if the sex scene is too much, and I'll keep them out of the fic. Otherwise I'm probably gonna sprinkle in some scenes here and there.
> 
> I wrote this in one day... I'm so tired, lmao  
> -Aries


	12. Chapter 12: New Faces

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kara leaves Lena's side for the first time in weeks, holding an interview that turns into a family emergency with her sister.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for any typos in this chapter, I wrote it in less than 6 hours, and my schedule's going to busy the next few days, so I'd rather post a typo-filled chapter than make you guys wait a week for a perfect chapter.
> 
> I'll try and find some time to proof-read if I get a chance,  
> -Aries

The beeping and buzzing on the nightstand next to the bed pulled Kara out of her dreaming. Her eyes blinked open, the room dim. There were rays of sunlight streaming through the dark curtains of Lena’s bedroom, but otherwise no light exposed the room.

Kara could see the hastily thrown clothing from the night before strewn across the bedroom floor. As she reached over to turn off her alarm, she felt arm arms and a naked body press against her equally naked back.

Lena sighed sleepily, the alarm having woken her up as well. They had returned to National City late last night, but even through their exhaustion they both made it clear that they wanted to keep going with the activities they had to stop in order to leave on time for their flight; the entire last day of Lena’s business trip they had spent in bed together, making up for lost time over the weeks of both of them had been too polite to make a true move towards what they both wanted so badly.

Kara picked up her phone off the nightstand, squinting at the bright screen in the dim room. It was 9am, and the alarm had been titled ‘Interview’. That’s right… Kara had scheduled today to meet up with one of her most promising applicants for filling one of the security crew spots.

Her name was… Sawyer… What was her first name? Kara couldn’t remember, her sleep deprived brain struggling to form coherent thoughts. She was running on less than 2 hours of sleep in the past 48 hours.

Setting her phone down on the pillow next to her, Kara tried to move out of Lena’s grip. Her arms only tightened more, a disgruntled grunt coming from behind Kara. “Baby, I need to get up,” Kara chuckled, reaching to grab her girlfriend’s wrists.

Lena refused to let go, making a point of entangling her legs in Kara’s. “I can’t be late to this meeting, Lena… It won’t be long; I’ll be back before dinner time. If we don’t get up now, then Ammarah’s going to walk in on us.” Kara didn’t try too hard to pry Lena’s arms away, not wanting to hurt her.

“Let her… I don’t care,” Lena grumbled sleepily. Kara scoffed, soothing her palm on Lena’s forearm. “Yes you do… Come on, it won’t be bad once we’re up.” Warm lips pressed against the back of Kara’s neck, tingling heat blossoming from the spot. Lena pulled away for a split second before pressing another kiss just a little lower on Kara’s spine.

Sighing in pleasure, Kara reached back and entangled her fingers in raven hair. “Come on, don’t do that,” she mumbled, back arching away from Lena’s burning kisses. Her girlfriend didn’t seem to listen, shifting down to kiss just between Kara’s shoulder blades.

“We’ll be fast,” Lena whispered against her lovers skin, making a point to nip right where Kara liked most. In a rush of movement, Kara had managed to untangle her legs, spinning to face Lena as she rolled them onto Lena’s back, pinning her down. She straddled her waist, trying to ignore how perfect Lena’s body looked under her.

Lena looked up in shock, surprised by the movement. Her green eyes were dark as they traveled down Kara’s face, trailing towards her chest. “Hey, my eyes are up here,” Kara laughed, removing a hand from Lena’s wrists to lift her head with a bent finger.

Her girlfriend hummed in dissatisfaction, giving an unamused look to Kara. “I’ll be back later, okay? Then you can get what you want.” The thoughts of what Lena wanted crawled into Kara’s mind, making her chest and ears warm with anticipation.

But she couldn’t be getting distracted now. She needed to clean her things from the apartment before Ammarah arrived in less than an hour. Just like with Winn, if Ammarah saw how comfortable Kara was getting, she’d suspect something.

Lena still looked grumpy, but sighed and nodded. Her perfect black hair was strewn across the white pillows, the low sunlight that lit the room catching her highlights perfectly. She looked like she belonged in a Greek painting.

Leaning down, Kara captured her lover’s lips in a deep, but quick kiss. They didn’t have time for anything more. Kara hopped off the bed, quickly gathering her clothing from the night before. She was well aware of Lena’s burning gaze on her, but she dared not glance back at the naked woman who perched elegantly in bed.

With all her clothing held to her chest, Kara hurried down the catwalk to her own room. She threw the dirty clothing in the hamper, grabbing a fresh suit and set of underwear before taking a quick, cold shower. Kara checked the time when she got out, deciding she had enough time to at least blow dry her hair a little, so it wasn’t soaking wet.

With her hair in a bun, and her suit looking pristine, Kara moved to grab a few of her personal items around the apartment. Lena still wasn’t out of bed, probably still laying around. There was no way she could go back to sleep; not without Kara.

Once the apartment was spotless, and Kara cleaned her room to look a little nicer- just in case Ammarah glanced in there while doing the routine checks that were a part of her security protocol –before she went back into Lena’s room.

Just as Kara thought, she was still lying in bed. She seemed to be reading something on her phone, a frown on her face as the blankets were pulled lazily up to her navel, torso on display for the room to see. Kara leaned in the doorway, her blue eyes trailing across her lovers exposed body.

“Are you going to try and get some more rest?” Kara already knew the answer, but she still tried. Maybe one day Lena would be able to sleep without the nightmares. She scoffed at the question, her eyes pulling away from the phone screen with a raised eyebrow.

“No… I have work to do, anyways. Answering emails and putting out fires that didn’t even need to be started in the first place.” Lena was grumpy, Kara could tell. She must be reading her emails right now, which is why she had such a dark look on her face.

Kara walked further into the room, up to the edge of the bed. Lena watched her, her annoyed look turned into one of curiosity. “Come closer,” Kara said in a soft voice, outstretching to her girlfriend in the middle of the bed. Lena closed her phone, tossing it in the sheets before she sat up, scooching so she sat on the edge of the bed.

Wrapping her warm hands around Lena’s burning waist, Kara leaned down and kissed her. This time she didn’t pull away after a pause, instead holding the kiss for a long moment. Lena reached up with her arms, lazily wrapping them around Kara’s neck.

Despite her obvious desire to pull Kara back into bed, Lena only let her palms wander across Kara’s clothed back. She respected that her girlfriend had drawn a line, not pushing her to do anything she didn’t want to do. Kara’s heart swelled happily, her affection for Lena growing.

The 2 women didn’t pull away until Kara felt her phone buzz in the inner pocket of her jacket. Lena must have felt it as well, huffing before she leaned away from the kiss. She leaned back on her hands, watching Kara with a disappointed frown; she still wanted to have her lips against her lovers, obviously.

Kara reached into her jacket, dropping her free hand to Lena’s thigh. She saw it was Ammarah calling her, so she answered it. “Kara Danvers,” She answered in a blank tone, her fingers trailing random patterns on her girlfriend’s ivory thigh.

“You said I could park in the parking garage, right? I’m like 2 minutes away,” Ammarah responded in her usually bubbly voice. “Right. You’ll see my car on the second story, park in the guest parking across from it. Do you know how to get up here?” Ammarah confirmed the directions on where to go, and the pin that needed to be put in, in order for the elevator doors to open when they reached the penthouse.

After a few brief words, the 2 guards hung up, Kara slipping her phone back into her jacket. “You should get dressed,” she sighed, sad to see the perfect body in front of her go. Lena huffily agreed, still not happy that Kara had to go somewhere today.

She slid off of the bed, leaning up to kiss Kara one last time before going to gather an outfit from her closet. “I’ll be downstairs,” Kara called through the closet doorway, Lena popping her head into view for a moment. “Okay… I’ll see you soon?” She looked a little worried; this was the first time they’ve been without each other for over 5 minutes in the past few weeks.

Kara smiled sweetly to her girlfriend, nodding. “I just need to do this working interview, then I’ll come straight home. Don’t work too hard, okay?... And please remember to eat something.” Lena smirked at her lovers worry, but nodded. Kara smiled one last time before heading downstairs. Ammarah arrived shortly after Kara gathered all her travel things together; wallet, paperwork, concealed carry, etc.

The elevator doors opened, Kara’s second hand coming into the penthouse, glancing around for Lena. “She’s still getting ready; it was a late night last night with the flight. She’ll be in a bad mood, so just do your checks every hour, then come back downstairs.” Ammarah listened with a serious face, glancing up at the catwalk.

“And if she gets hungry? Do I have to run out myself?” She asked, glancing at the time. It was almost 10am, and Kara assumed she was referring to lunch. “No, there’s food in the kitchen she can heat up. I’ll be back a little after noon, but if you get hungry you can work something out with Ms. Luthor… Any other questions?”

Ammarah shook her head, already starting to move around the room. She had a bag that seemed to have some sort of entertainment for the day. “I’ll be fine here, go ahead and go. I’ll call if I need anything.” Ammarah waved her off, playfully acting like she was pushing her out of the door.

Kara wished she could say a proper goodbye to Lena, but it would be odd for her to walk into her room just to do so. With a suppressed sigh Kara called the elevator. “If anything- and I mean anything –looks suspicious, you call me, okay?” Kara gave Ammarah a pointed look, her second in command quickly nodding.

Satisfied, Kara turned to the ding of the elevator. Just before she walked out of the apartment, she glanced up the stairs to see Lena looking down at her, a blank look on her face but a glint of worry in her eyes. Kara could feel her own anxiety buzzing, but she shoved it back as she pressed the button to the ground floor, watching the apartment she called home closing off from view.

**********

Kara walked into L-Corp calmly. She hadn’t been here for a month now, but it all seemed familiar. The same receptionist greeted Kara with a smile and a nod. She made her way past the lobby, and up to the conference floor. Kara crossed her arms in front of herself as she watched the floor numbers ding past.

The doors opened to a hallway lined with glass conference rooms. Some of them had a privacy setting on that turned the glass a frosted texture, while others remained perfectly clear. Kara strolled down the hallway, taking a few turns until she reached the agreed upon room.

She was surprised to see a woman already sitting in the room, her back turned to the door. Kara slipped in, clearing her throat to announce herself. The figure turned in her chair to look at Kara, a polite smile on her face. She was Hispanic, with deep brown hair that curled in almost perfect ringlets. Her deep brown eyes stuck to Kara as she walked further into the room, moving to sit across from the woman.

“Ms. Sawyer, I’m Kara Danvers,” Kara said politely, outstretching her hand to the woman. “Please, call me Maggie,” Ms. Sawyer politely corrected, smiling as she shook Kara’s hand. Her palms were calloused, and her grip was strong. Kara was already impressed.

She pulled out the paperwork, but didn’t look down to read it. “So, can you tell me a little about yourself? Why you’re interested in this security job?” Kara leaned back, crossing her legs and leaning on the left arm rest of her chair.

Maggie straightened, her composure calm, but her face nervous. “I’d like to move up in this line of work, to be honest. When I was younger I started off as a grocery bagger at a store the Immortals protected. I got involved with them- I had issues with my cop father who abandoned me, so I chose to be in a gang –and these people became a family to me.”

There was a pause where Maggie took a breath, looking at Kara with an unwavering gaze. “I did leave for a short while, to join the Navy, but my past got me in trouble there, so I was discharged. I figured that the Immortals are all I really know, so I came back… But after you get a taste of actually helping people- for good, not for money –it’s hard to go back to the hard stuff, you know?”

“So you’d like to join in protecting Ms. Luthor so that you don’t have to do typical mafia work?” Kara asked bluntly. Maggie’s eyes lit up, realizing that Kara didn’t seem to look down on her for wanting to distance herself from the Immortals reputation. “Yeah, exactly! I was hoping that… If this all works out, I could actually use this experience to start myself in the actual body guard business, like yourself.”

Maggie gestured to Kara, looking hopeful. Kara remembered why she got into the protection business; She wanted to keep helping people, to protect them from people who tried to harm them. It was a step below military work, but a step above mafia work, so Kara couldn’t really blame Maggie for wanting to get back to where she once was.

Satisfied with her explanation for why she wanted to join Kara’s security group, she looked down at Maggie’s file. “So I see you were in the Navy for 5 years before being dishonorably discharged. Can I ask what specifically got you in trouble?” Kara looked up from the file, noticing Maggie frown.

“I had a buddy from here that got in trouble with the wrong people. He needed a ride out of a bad part of down, and I was the only one who answered his phone call… Long story short, I got caught sneaking off base.” Kara raised her eyebrow. They might demote someone for sneaking away from their post, but they would never discharge someone for it, unless it was a repeated offense.

Kara was just about to point that out when Maggie added with an ashamed look, “And I fought a few sergeants trying to run away.” Oh… Yeah, that would do it. If Kara had heard that Maggie fought her superiors a few years ago, when she was younger, she would have looked down on her greatly.

Now, however, Kara didn’t really have an opinion; she had no love for her time in the Army, considering it just left her with trauma and dead friends. All she really cared about was that if Maggie was willing to fight someone just to get to her friend, then she was loyal. It meant that if she was loyal to Lena, she’d do anything to keep her safe.

“So then you know how to fight, if you had the confidence to fight multiple sergeants,” Kara pointed out, causing Maggie to let out a bark of laughter. “Yeah, you could say that… I mean I’m not Special Forces, but I can hold my own.” Maggie held her smile, watching Kara’s face change into one of surprise.

“You looked me up?” She arched an eyebrow, impressed by Maggie’s thoroughness. “When I heard they hired someone from outside the Immortals to protect the heiress of the Luthor name, I figured it was worth looking into. I got your name from a higher friend in the Immortals food chain, and googled you.”

Now Kara was intrigued, “What did you find, exactly?” She leaned back, intertwining her fingers on her crossed lap. “Nothing on your personal life, just on your military career. First ever woman to become a Spec Ops in such record time. You must be really good at something in order to be able to become such a prestigious soldier in such little time.” Maggie also looked curious, her head tilting.

Kara remembered when she had first seen the recruiters coming around boot camp. In her mind she didn’t do anything special, but apparently something had caught their eye, because they offered her an opening in testing to becoming a Spec Ops Solider. Kara had always been taught to never turn down an opportunity; the worst that could happen is she failed and had to go back to boot camp.

“I’m really good at killing people,” Kara answered simply, unsure on how to answer the question as she gauged Maggie’s reaction. To her surprise Maggie laughed, nodding. It was odd talking to someone who was so desensitized to death, just like her. “Yeah, I assumed so. It’s honestly a curse for those who are gifted with the ability to take a life so easily.”

Kara couldn’t have agreed more. There were a lot of soldiers who envied her ability to pull the trigger without hesitation. For Kara, however, it was always an internal war that she had to repress with each kill. Eventually she had to just tell herself it was life or death, but there was always that small part of her that whispered how life wasn’t that black and white.

There were a few more questions Kara went through that Maggie answered easily. In Kara’s book the woman in front of her just passed this interview with flying colors; she was loyal and would protect Lena without question, she claimed to be skilled enough in fighting to be able to do her job correctly, and her desire to expand her career in to protection business meant she wanted to pass this job with flying colors.

After about 45 minutes of questions and answers from both sides, Kara shut Maggie’s file. “The last part of this interview is a test that I mentioned over e-mail- Lillian Luthor requires me to do this –is where we’ll go to the boxing gym down the street and I’ll grade your fighting skill.” Maggie nodded in understanding; talking about being a good fighter was completely different than actually being a good fighter.

“Yeah, I got it; I need to prove I can actually keep Ms. Luthor safe if she does get attacked again.” Kara confirmed her statement, standing as she gathered her paperwork. “Meet me at Sal’s Gym in 10 minutes. I’ll give you some time to change into the proper clothing.”

The 2 left the conference room, going downstairs together before diverting at the parking garage. Kara, who always had a bag of fresh clothing in case of emergencies, changed into the rather simple t-shirt and leggings, having arrived at the gym faster than Maggie.

When Maggie arrived and changed, she met Kara out in a taped out sparking circle on some thick blue mats. She wore shorts and a tank top, her hair pulled up into a pony tail. “Alright, so I figured we’ll do 3, 5-minute grappling rounds, then I’ll ask you to show me some of your close fisted strikes on a practice dummy. We’re not trying to hurt each other, so no hitting.”

Maggie looked intently at Kara, nodding to the rules as she kicked off her shoes. Kara glanced at her body type, gathering that she had mostly all her strength in her legs. Her arms looked well-muscled, but lacked any major shoulder strength. As if on auto pilot Kara’s brain started to work out moves to use Maggie’s weak points to Kara’s advantage.

Stepping into the circle, Kara started a timer before both women lifted their arms in a boxer’s stance, Kara clenching her fists out of habit. They both had focused looks on their face, Maggie noticeably glancing all over Kara’s body. Kara knew her own weak points; she was vulnerable to attacks from the back, and had a bad habit of not pinning someone quick enough, so they could sometimes roll away from her attack.

The 2 women circled slow, waiting for the other to attack. Kara wanted to see how quickly Maggie got impatient. It only took about 30 seconds before she let out a puff of air, signaling her attack subconsciously. She charged forward, ducked low just like they trained in boot camp.

Kara set her stance so her right foot was planted behind her, bending at her left knee to brace for the bear hug. Maggie launched into Kara’s abdomen with her shoulder, wrapping her arms around Kara’s torso. Kara bent forward, her own arms wrapping just under Maggie’s ribcage. She squeezed tightly, Maggie grunting quietly.

Pushing all her strength into her right shoulder, Maggie started to try and make Kara start walking, so she had to switch out of her grounded stance and risk losing her balance. Kara knew the trick well, shuffling her feet wide as she moved with the turn. What she wasn’t expecting was for Maggie to then suddenly change the direction she was pushing, tossing her to the side she wasn’t bracing against.

Kara’s back hit the mat hard, Maggie falling with her to try and pin her down. Luckily with her back to the mat’s, Kara was able to switch her hold, sliding her left arm to wrap around Maggie’s right with lightning fast reaction time. As Maggie had started to fall on top of her, Kara bent her knee up to her chest.

Maggie fell onto her shin with a look of surprise, already trying to roll off to the side when she realized what Kara was doing. It was too late, however. Kara managed to plant her foot right in the cradle of Maggie’s hip. With a grunt of effort, Kara kicked her leg forward.

Her opponent went flying backwards, landing on her back three feet away. By the time Kara was able to get herself to her feet, Maggie was rolling onto her knees and charging again, this time towards Kara’s legs.

“Woah!” Kara involuntarily cried out, surprised that Maggie was attacking so quickly. She just managed to drop to a knee, catching Maggie and using the momentum to toss her to the side. She had learned that movie from Li Yang when she had tried to protect Lena up on the abandoned apartment roof top.

Maggie slid another few feet away, landing just outside the taped circle. With her being thrown out of bounds, it ended the round. She was already starting to breath heavily as she stood, a hair falling out of her hair tie.

Kara also stood, moving to reset the timer on her phone. That round had lasted less than 2 minutes. “Very good; I see you don’t stay down on the ground for very long,” Kara smiled through her own slightly labored breathing, genuinely impressed.

“I learned really quick that the ground is the last place you want to be in a fight… Although I have to admit, last time I was tossed around like a sack of flour was when I was younger and playing rough with some of the bigger kids in the neighborhood,” Maggie chuckled, brushing the hair out of her face.

Kara laughed with her, starting the timer and moving back into the ring. “I’ve been told I’m built like a bull,” Kara said as she resumed her stance. Maggie scoffed in the back of her throat. “Understatement of the century,” she said before they both went silent.

Instead of waiting to see how impatient Maggie got again- she could already tell she had a short fuse –Kara attacked first. She charged, but didn’t bend low till the last second. Maggie caught her, both hands grabbing her shoulders. That’s exactly what Kara wanted; With her arms busy grappling, she didn’t notice Kara kick her leg out.

Sweeping her legs out from under her, Maggie fell to the ground with flailing arms. Her instinct was to try and get Kara on her back, so she tried to kick Kara’s own legs out from under her. Kara was already knelt down, so the kick went into her side.

It hurt, but Kara was flexed enough that it didn’t knock the wind out of her lungs. Curling into the kick, Kara then wrapped her arm around Maggie’s leg so she couldn’t pull away. In a dizzying amount of quick movements, Kara expertly flipped Maggie onto her stomach, and bent her leg into an uncomfortable position. Her knee was pressed into Maggie’s back, but she didn’t put all her weight against the base of her spine.

“Ow, ow, ow!” Maggie smacked her palm on the mat’s, signaling her surrender. Instantly Kara released the hold, jumping up onto her feet. She offered a hand to Maggie, who looked a little disheartened by the second loss, although not angry.

She took the hand, letting Kara help her up. “I’m not doing great on proving my skill to you, am I?” Maggie huffed through her heavy breathing, rotating her leg that Kara had bent. “I’m not looking to see if you can beat me, I’m just seeing what your skill level is. So far you’re doing very well; it’s rare that someone knows how to actually grapple and preform proper movies. Most just throw punches and hope something sticks.”

The compliment seemed to lighten Maggie’s spirits. She smiled to her future boss, taking a deep breath in preparation as she moved back to the ring. Again Kara restarted the timer, noting that the second round was considerably shorter than the first round.

Maggie attacked as soon as Kara got in the ring, taking her by surprise. She got a running start and slid, grabbing both of Kara’s legs and yanking her to the ground. Kara fell onto her side, bracing for the fall with her arms as she smacked against the mats.

In a scrabble of movement, Maggie shoved Kara’s bending knee down before it could get too high. Kara’s next defensive attempt was to try and shove her off balance, but when she reached up Maggie grabbed her arm and moved to put it in an arm bar.

Her legs wrapped around Kara’s shoulder and head, and her hands pulled and bent Kara’s right arm at a painful angle. Kara gritted her teeth in pain, forgetting just how uncomfortable this move was. Most people’s reactions would to try and unlock Maggie’s legs, or pull away from her grip, but Kara knew they were iron tight.

So instead, she rolled with the direction Maggie was pulling, now pushing her onto her back with her hips in the air. The realization of what Kara was about to do was visible on her face, causing Kara to smirk.

Kara grabbed Maggie’s hands, pinning them against her wrist. Maggie had made the mistake of pinning the wrong arm; she should have gone for her farthest arm and put Kara on her stomach, not her back. Now with Maggie trapped, Kara switched her legs around so she was kneeling wide.

“No, no, no,” Maggie started to beg, but Kara was already starting to lift. It took a lot of strength, but forcing her trapped arm to bend at the elbow for leverage, Kara was able to use Maggie’s hold against her.

Sweat prickled along Kara’s hairline as she held Maggie up, her head bent back at an odd angle due to Maggie’s legs in her face. Kara didn’t bother standing all the way, lifting her up just enough so that she could fall from high enough that when Maggie hit the floor it caused her to release the hold.

The maneuver worked, Maggie practically bouncing against the mats as Kara threw her down. With her arm now free, Kara was able to roll backwards, and away from her opponent. Maggie struggled to regain her breath, disoriented as she rolled onto her stomach.

It looked as if she had hit her head against the mat, screwing up her sense of direction. She looked around with dazed eyes, trying to find Kara, who kneeled at a respectful distance. She scrambled up messily, trying to launch across the ring at her opponent, who caught her practically mid-air and just tossed her out of the ring.

Right as she rolled out of the circle, the 5-minute timer went off signaling the end of the final round. Maggie stayed on the ground for a moment, groaning into the blue plastic beneath her. “That was a really good try,” Kara said with a little bit of light laughter.

“It’s been a long time since someone’s made me really sweat… How’s your head? You didn’t hit to hard, did you?” Kara stood from where she knelt, once again offering a hand to Maggie. “I’ll be okay; I’ve been hit worse. More just embarrassed I couldn’t even pin you once.”

Kara hummed in amusement, deciding it was better not to throw her rank in Maggie’s face. Instead, she gave her pointers on her maneuvers. At first Kara just verbally explained how to fix her mistakes, but as Maggie as questions they started to actually spar again, Kara teaching her this time.

After about an extra hour of training, Maggie was actually able to pin Kara with her instructions. Now both women equally as sweaty and panting, they moved onto the last part of the ‘test’, where Maggie showed off her boxing skills on a dummy.

Kara could confidently say her punch was much more skilled than her grappling. She dodged and weaved imaginary fists as she socked the dummy so hard that it was tipping backwards on its sand filled base. Kara didn’t have her show off for too long, acknowledging that she was starting to get tired.

They called it a day, Kara packing up her things with Maggie as they spoke casually. “So with this job you’ll still be working as an Immortal on your off days, but when Lena goes out on trips involving the Immortals, or going around different parts of the city you’ll be part of the security detail. I’ll call you when you’re needed, which should be in a few days.”

Maggie smiled in excitement at the new job experience, thanking Kara for the opportunity, as well as her teaching. Kara let Maggie leave first, taking a moment to was her face and change back into her suit in the bathroom.

She had managed to get into her car and pull out onto the street before her phone started to ring in the seat next to her. Kara arched an eyebrow, glancing down at the caller ID that popped up on her car consol. ‘Alex Danvers’ it read.

Kara quickly answered the call. “Hey, Alex. What’s up?” It was rare that her sister called her, especially out of the blue like this.

“What are you doing right now?” Alex’s voice sounded nervous, and there was a lot of traffic background noise, like she was walking down a city street.

“Uhm… Driving back to work, why?”

“You’re still in National City, right? You’re not on another trip?”

“Right- Alex, what’s going on? Are you okay?” Kara felt her heart pick up pace in anxiety.

“Yeah, I’m okay… Kinda… I’m working a job, and it just happened to be next to National City, and I was going back to my hotel from the crime scene, but my car suddenly up and died on me. Could you help me out? You can just take me to my hotel or something.” Alex sounded nervous, obviously unhappy that she was lost.

Kara suddenly pulled over into a street parking space, pulling up her map on the car’s touch screen consol. “Are you by any street signs? Where’s the location you were just at?” Alex took a moment to find a sign before reading the intersection off.

Using the area Alex said her work was in, Kara was able to find the intersection on her map. “Okay, stay there. I’ll be there soon,” Kara instructed, feeling a little panicked at her location; she wasn’t in a good part of town, the territory belonging to a small but vicious gang that the Immortals had left alone for now.

Kara hung up with Alex, who promised to stay still. As soon as the call ended, Kara went to dial Lena’s number, but her finger paused right over her name on the car’s touch screen. As much as she wanted to call Lena and tell her about the emergency personally, she couldn’t. It’d look weird that she was calling her, and not Ammarah.

Reluctantly, Kara instead called her second in command; she needed the update, not Lena. Pulling back onto the road, Kara stared to make her way to where Alex was. Ammarah picked up after a few rings, “Hey, is everything okay?”

“Yeah, uh, I just got stuck in the interview- but that’s not why I’m calling. I’ve got a family emergency that I have to handle. Can you stay a little later? I don’t know when I’ll be back, though.” Kara’s thumb nervously tapped against her steering wheel, gnawing on her lower lip.

“Emergency? Is everything okay?” Ammarah sounded worried, and Kara silently hoped Lena wasn’t around to hear the conversation, not wanting to scare her. “Just family stuff, Ammarah. I’ll try and be back in a timely manner. Just keep doing exactly what you’ve been doing these past few hours.”

The curiosity was palpable even through the phone, but Ammarah kept her questions to herself. “Yeah, will do. Don’t feel like you need to rush, I’ve got everything under control here.” Was she able to take this calmly? Would Lena be okay without her? Kara knew from experience that if someone’s coping mechanism was taken away, that person tended to spiral into a pit of flashbacks and anxiety.

Regardless, Kara was just going to have to make it up to Lena later. She thanked Ammarah, hanging up afterwards. She followed the car map until she reached the intersection, slowing down and looking all around. Out of the shadow of an alleyway, Alex popped out onto the sidewalk.

Kara stopped quickly, unlocking her door right as her sister got into the car, locking it as soon as she closed the door. “Hey! Are you okay?!” Kara looked her sister over, happy to see she didn’t look to be hurt or anything. She did have a lot of car grease on her hands, though.

“I’m fine, just pissed off!” Alex grumped, crossing her arms as Kara drove off, just to get out of the stingy part of the outer city. “What happened to your car? Why’d you walk away from it anyways?” Kara glanced between her annoyed sister and the road.

“Because some guy kept trying to talk to me while I was trying to see what was wrong with the car, so I figured I’d take a walk and see if he left, but I got so turned around with all the turns I was taking to lose the damn dude that I got lost!” Kara frowned, but knowing that her sister was safe was a huge relief.

She hadn’t been attacked, or run into any rival gangs that didn’t like outsiders on their turf. “So where’s this hotel?” Kara kept driving out of the gang’s territory, feeling a sense of security as they pulled into Immortal territory.

Alex started to give the general name of the hotel chain, but gasped in the middle of her sentence. She suddenly started to pat at her pants pockets, a look of panic on her face. When she didn’t feel what she was looking for she started to cuss loudly.

Kara gave her sister a bewildered look, eyes wide as she flinched at the sudden outburst. “I left my damn room key!” Alex yelled, smacking the dashboard with an open palm. Kara raised an eyebrow, glancing extra-long at Alex. “And? Just ask for a new one?”

“It had the address on the key, that’s the only reason I knew where to go! This part of the city is a damn maze! There was like 25 different locations all in a 10-mile radius, and I don’t even know what area of the city it’s in.” Alex pinched the bridge of her nose, throwing in a few extra cusswords.

Kara felt her sisters anger starting to bleed into her own emotions, her jaw twitching in annoyance. “Why the heck do you not know where the hotel is? How did you get there in the first place?” Kara didn’t know the outer section of the city, so it’s not like she could start naming off streets for her sister to recognize.

“I used my phone GPS, so I wasn’t even looking at the direction or street names- and before you suggest I use my phone again it’s already dead… Just after I called you it turned off.” Now Kara was openly showing her annoyance, sighing heavily. She wasn’t angry at her sister- to be honest it probably wouldn’t have been any different if she was in that situation –but she was impatient to make sure Lena was okay.

Pulling into a safe-looking gas station, Kara turned to her sister, trying to problem solve. “So you don’t know the address of the hotel, and your phone is dead… Can you use my phone to call your partner? Or someone who also has the address to the hotel?”

“My partner isn’t going to show up till tomorrow morning, but maybe if I call my buddy in the office he can tell me,” Alex offered with a shrug. Kara quickly handed her the phone, watching her dial a number. The phone rang almost till the line hung itself up, but finally someone answered.

Kara couldn’t hear the person who answered the phone, only what Alex was saying. “Hey, Mark? Yeah, it’s Alex. Could you do me a favor?” There was a pause where Mark responded. “It’s just a really quick thing I need you to do; The reports for the McGlaufflin case, it should have expense reports listing the hotel and its address that I’m staying at- yes it’s on my computer… No, you’re going to have to type in the password.”

Alex paused again, waiting for Mark to get to her computer. “Okay, so the password should be,” Alex rattled off a long series of letters and numbers that made no sense to Kara. Another pause where Alex’s face dropped into even more annoyance. “Make sure caps lock is off, Mark… Here, try again…” Again Alex listed the password, but said it much slower.

Mark must have failed again, because Alex took in a deep breath, her jaw clenching and unclenching. She listed off the password excruciatingly slow, pausing for at least 5 seconds between each number and letter.

“What do you mean it’s still not working?! Mark, it’s the damn password, I’ve used that password for 3 years now!” Now Alex was yelling, her face turning red. She paused, her eyes darting all across the windshield as she listened to what seemed like the stupidest person in the world talk.

“Number lock?! You’re telling me the computer locked you out because you didn’t have on _number lock_?!” Kara felt her heart sink, realizing her sister was now stranded without a car or hotel address. Alex continued to yell into the phone for another few minutes before abruptly hanging up and tossing the phone into Kara’s lap.

The Danvers Sister’s sat there for a few minutes, Alex silently fuming while Kara tried to think of what to do. Eventually Alex started to speak, “I have a tracker on my car, but I can’t access it with a dead phone. If we can get somewhere I can charge my phone, then I can get to the tracker app… Can you take me somewhere I can do that?”

Kara thought for a moment, not wanting to just throw her sister into another hotel and make her pay for a room she’s not even going to use. “Well, I have my apartment?” She suggested with a shrug. Alex furrowed her eyebrows, looking to Kara. “Aren’t you living with Lena?”

She had mentioned that in a update text to her mom and sister a few weeks ago- keeping out the part about their relationship –saying that she had to increase security on her boss. “Yeah, but I still have my old place. It’s kind of empty right now, but if you just need a place to charge your phone… I can’t take you to Lena’s, otherwise it’s a security threat and we could all get in trouble, so my apartments the only logical place.”

“Do you have a charger?” Alex asked, visibly contemplating the suggested plan. Kara confirmed that she did, saying there was still some extra stuff in the apartment that she didn’t need at Lena’s. “Okay, well… If it’s not too much of a hassle. Just so I can find out where my car is with my phone, and call a tow truck to meet us out there.”

Kara agreed, starting her car up again and driving to her apartment. It took a while, considering the building was closer to the center of the city, and the rush hour traffic was starting to pick up. It was well past 4pm by the time they pulled into the apartment parking garage, Kara leading the way up to the abandoned home.

Using the key on her keychain to unlock the apartment, Kara let Alex in, grabbing her a charger. Her phone screen flashed a dead battery symbol, refusing to let Alex try and use it as it charged. “It has this stupid safety thing where I can’t use the phone till it’s at least 50%, and the battery takes forever to even get to that point… Stupid, crappy, old phone,” Alex grumbled.

Kara frowned, looking down at the dead battery flashing across the screen. “Well… I guess we’ll just have to wait then…” Both sisters moved to sit down in the dusty living room, Alex sighing heavily. There was a pause where both sisters were silent, just staring into nothingness.

“It’s good to see you, though,” Kara offered, trying to make the situation a little bit less stressful. Alex looked away from the ceiling, smiling kindly at her sister. “Yeah, I miss you… We’ve both been so busy since Christmas. How are you and Lena? Did everything smooth over?”

Kara had mentioned their fight to her mother, so it didn’t surprise her that Alex knew about it as well. She probably knew that they had also been in some sort of danger involving the Immortals and Emerald Dragons, but she politely waited for Kara to bring it up herself.

“Things are really good… Speaking of her, I should probably let her know the situation. I have a feeling we’re going to be here well past the time I said I’d be back.” Kara excused herself, standing and walking to her old bedroom. She couldn’t call Lena, but she could text her to give a more personal update than Ammarah probably did.

_’Hey, are you okay? Alex is in town with a really complicated situation. I won’t be home till very late. I’m sorry, I know I said I’d be home quickly…’_

Kara felt guilty, knowing that the disruption of Lena’s schedule was probably stressful. Not only was Kara Lena’s safe space, but she was also her coping mechanism to deal with her PTSD. She didn’t mean to make things so complicated with the interview and now Alex.

It didn’t take Lena long to respond.

_’When will you be home?’_

Kara frowned at the brief answer, knowing that Lena was purposefully ignoring her question. She stared at the screen for a long time, unsure on how to answer the question.

_’Are you alone? Can I call?’_

Maybe Ammarah was giving Lena enough space that they could pretend like the call was a meeting or something. There was another pause before Lena responded again.

_’Okay, you can call.’_

Instantly Kara pressed the phone icon next to Lena’s name. She anxiously nibbled her lip, the phone only ringing once before it was answered. “Is everything okay?” Lena instantly asked as soon as she picked up. Her voice was falsely calm, cracking at the end of her question. Kara closed her eyes tightly, eyebrows furrowing in guilt.

“Yeah, I’m fine; everything’s fine. Alex’s car broke down outside of town, and she was in a bad area, so I picked her up. It’s turned into this whole thing, and now we have to wait for her phone to charge so we can find the car again,” Kara tried to explain, her voice soft and testing. 

Was Lena mad at her? Was she having anxiety or panic attacks? “Can I help in some way?” Lena asked, showing her worry a little bit. Kara inhaled as she tried to think of some way Lena could help, pacing the room.

She couldn’t come to Kara and Alex, because it’d seem suspicious that she was going to see her body guard for no reason. Kara and Alex couldn’t go to her, because- as mentioned before –it was a security problem. For a moment Kara wondered if she could leave Alex alone, but she didn’t want Alex to think she was leaving her for her boss.

“I think I’ll be okay, but uh… What about you? Are you okay?” Kara didn’t realize she was tapping her fingers on her thigh until she paused in her pacing. “I’m just nervous that something’s going to happen. They’re after you, too… Yang said it himself, you’re a threat in their eyes… I just don’t want you out in the open.”

Kara managed to hold her nervous laughter in. Lena was worried that _she_ was going to get hurt? Wasn’t that her job, not the other way around? Kara smiled to herself, looking down at the ground. “We’re safe in my apartment, Lena. Please don’t worry… You’re not having any anxiety problems or anything? I know it’s hard to lose that schedule and security so suddenly.”

“Well, I am having anxiety, but work is distracting me… Can we talk about it when you get home?” Kara’s smile widened at the suggestion, happy that Lena’s willing to talk through her stress instead of bottling it up. “I promise that we can talk as soon as I’m home… I’ll be back in a few hours, just hold on till then, okay?”

Lena hummed softly, audibly relaxing at the thought of being able to see her lover. “Okay, I can do that… Stay safe, and text me when you’re leaving and coming home.” Knowing that Lena was able to relax helped Kara relax, knowing she wasn’t as bad as she thought she was going to be without her.

Affection for her lover swelled in Kara’s chest, just like it did at least a hundred times a day every day. 

“I’ll see you soon, baby.” Kara hung up, a small, hopeful smile still on her face.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know the ending is kinda sudden, and I meant to put more conversation between Alex and Kara, but I'd like to focus a little more on Lena's relationship with PTSD, so I figured I'll start next chapter exactly where this one left off, but in Lena's POV.
> 
> I'll try and post some time this weekend, but if I can't then I'll see you guys next week!  
> -Aries


	13. Chapter 13: Flashbacks

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lena struggles with anxiety and PTSD as she get stuck in her dreams.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (NSFW Warning: Sexual Content)  
> (Tigger Warning: Please skip the dream scene if you're set off by gruesome imagery)
> 
> I got this chapter finished a day early, yay! Please enjoy. There's lot of emotion in this one. 
> 
> Have a good weekend, everyone!  
> -Aries

_”I’ll see you soon, baby.”_

Lena’s index finger tapped on her knee, legs crossed as she sat. Setting the phone on the desk, the call having ended a short time ago. She was alone in her office, door closed while Ammarah probably continued to watch TV on her computer she brought along with her.

Anxiety still buzzed high in her chest, but getting to hear Kara’s voice softened the noise just a touch, taking off the edge. Kara was okay. She wasn’t hurt, or captured, or stuck somewhere. She was just helping out Alex.

All day Lena’s been in her office, alone for the most part. Ammarah would do her usual checks, popping her head into the doorway after knocking politely. She didn’t really say much, other than explaining that she was just checking in. At one point, however, she mentioned that Kara was going to be late due to a family emergency.

Lena’s first reaction at that news was to call Kara, but if she was dealing with family the last thing Kara needed was for her girlfriend to be pestering her. Kara would figure out a way to talk to her at some point to update her, and in the end she had.

Still, even with the update and the promise of coming home before the sunrise, Lena was anxious. She put on a brave face when there was a small knock on the door, calling for Ammarah to come in. She carefully opened the door, stepping into the room.

“Kara Danvers just called saying she’s going to be much later than she thought. Of course I’ll still be here, but I thought I might just update you,” Ammarah spoke casually, her unprofessional manner a stark contrast to Kara’s usually perfectly clipped personality- during work, that is.

Lena nodded, taking in a deep breath to steady herself. Her face was stoic, but behind the desk her knee was bouncing. “Thank you, Ammarah. If you need to get some rest, I have some spare blankets to make the couch into a bed.” She felt bad that the Immortal had been stuck here for so long, most likely having to cancel plans with her own friends.

“Oh, no, I’ll be okay… I uhm… I hope you don’t mind me saying this, but maybe you should get some sleep yourself? It’s almost 9, and you look tired… Or at least eat something? You haven’t stepped out of your office all day.” Lena was tired. Exhausted was a better word. She was emotionally and physically drained. She was worried about Kara, her mind delving into deep places that she didn’t want it to go.

But Lena couldn’t sleep. Not without Kara, her security blanket. She knew it was something she had to work on, but now was not the time. Right now she just wanted to be curled into her girlfriend and ignore the world for at least 24 hours.

Lena realized she was just staring down at the ground, just next to where Ammarah stood, zoned out. “I’ll be okay. There’s still work to be done, and I don’t have a lot of spare time right now.” Ammarah took the hint, nodding as she backed out of the room. “Just let me know if you need me.”

The door closed, Lena letting out the breath she didn’t realize she had been holding. Her dismissal hadn’t been a lie; she really did have a lot of work to do that was due shortly. Turning back to her computer, Lena started back up the project she had paused to talk to Kara.

It was boring, and a little frustrating, but it kept her mind off of the fear that still tingled in the back of her head. Every once and a while Lena had to pause, and remind herself of Kara’s reassuring words. She was safe. There was no reason to freak out just because something unexpected happened.

Lena silently wondered why exactly she was so freaked out in the first place. It was just that morning that she was comfortable with Kara leaving, even though she knew she’d miss her dearly. Now, however, it felt like the worst thing in the world.

Was this how her damaged mind responded to a sudden change in plans now? Lena had no idea how important her schedule was outside of work until now. Her plans becoming unstable seemed to remind her of the unstable situations she had been thrown into with the Emerald Dragons.

The last time everything in her life was turned upside down it was because the woman she loved had been so injured she couldn’t work pro-

Wait.

Something in that thought drew Lena’s attention away from the topic, her fingers pausing over the keyboard she was subconsciously typing over.

What sounded weird?

‘The last time everything in her life was turned upside down was because the woman she lo-‘

_Oh god._

Slip of the tongue… Was that a slip of the tongue? Lena wasn’t even talking, there’s no way she could have messed up like that.

Another wave of panic over the intrusive thought poured through Lena.

Fuck… She was in this so much deeper than she thought she was. Her strong attraction to Kara wasn’t just her desire to be wanted like she thought it was at the very beginning of this whole thing; when she first admitted to herself that she felt something romantic for Kara back in Colorado.

Despite Lena’s lack of understanding of love, that wasn’t what made her heart rate pick up. She didn’t feel panic over the self-admission of love. If anything, there was a little part of her that felt joy at the thought of finally being able to love someone.

She might have a lack of understanding and experience in such a feeling, but it felt good finally putting a name to the overwhelming draw she felt for her body guard. It was something new, and while new things were scary, Lena felt that she had enough time to slowly figure this emotion out.

So no, it wasn’t that love was such a foreign feeling that sent Lena into a panic. It was her fear over Kara’s reaction if she ever found out that sent her into a panic. They didn’t entirely talk about the relationship they were jumping into, other than setting ground rules about how to keep it a secret.

Lena nibbled her lip, leaning back in her chair as she zoned out, lost in thought. Was this a serious thing for Kara? Did she have as much emotional connection in this as Lena did? She knows that Kara had struggled a lot with her feelings, because she wanted to keep things professional at first, but is this relationship as serious to Kara as it is to Lena.

Her head spun. Today was such a day of self-exploration, and it made Lena feel sick to her stomach. Of course the one day she doesn’t have Kara with her is the day Lena’s a complete and total mess.

God she’s so tired… How badly she just wants to sleep. If she could sleep, then that meant she could avoid the hours she had to wait. The hours that gave her time to think more and more about the anxiety in her chest, and the fear in her brain.

Lena pulled herself out of her thoughts, inhaling so deeply that it felt like her lungs were about to burst. She let the air out slowly, turning back to her computer. Now wasn’t the time to be thinking about this. She needed to work. When Kara was back home everything would be okay again. She wouldn’t have to think of these things.

Returning to her work, Lena was able to waste away another 2 hours before she had to pause. Her thoughts were starting to lag behind, the words she was typing not making any sense anymore. Lena just needed to rest her head. She’d be okay to work again after a few minutes.

Lena crossed her arms on her desk, resting her forehead against them. It wasn’t the most comfortable position, but it was a way for Lena to block out the world. She tried her best not to think about her anxiety, or about her fear over how Kara would react if she found out that Lena loved her.

She didn’t realize that she was starting to fall asleep until it was too late.

**********

_Where was she? It was black. Completely black. No source of light. This wasn’t like her usual dreams. She was aware that she was dreaming, walking around the blackness for some sort of exit._

_She couldn’t see, but she could hear. Voices echoed as if she was in a cave. They sounded to be whispering, but Lena couldn’t make out what they were saying._

_“Hello?” Lena called out. The only thing that responded was the echo of her own voice reverberating off of invisible walls._

_Fear started to creep into Lena’s chest. She wanted out of here. Out of the darkness._

_She started to run._

_Running, and running, and running._

_With no way to judge her speed or distance, Lena felt like she was just on a treadmill. That didn’t stop her, though. She ran until she felt like she couldn’t breathe, her legs burning._

_Only when she stopped moving did her surroundings start to come into view. It looked as if a movie screen was slowly coming towards her, until suddenly she was inside that screen, and the environment it showed._

_Lena still didn’t know where she was, or who was surrounding her. They were strangers, all dressed in black, staring at her. Lena looked down and saw she was also dressed in black. The dress looked familiar._

_It was the same dress she wore to her father’s funeral._

_Lena’s head shot up, looking around. She was at a funeral. Who’s was it?_

_She looked at the front of the room, seeing the chestnut casket standing on stilts. It was closed. So it wasn’t her father; his casket had been opened, his unnaturally pale face on view for everyone to see._

_So if it wasn’t her father, then who was it?_

_Lena’s eyes drifted to where her instincts screamed for her not to look. There was a portrait standing just to the left of the casket._

_Brilliant blue eyes that Lena loved so much stared back at her, glittering in an eternally frozen smile. Kara’s hair was down, curled around her shoulders just like Lena liked. She looked the most beautiful with her hair down, showing her comfort around Lena._

_Tears that Lena didn’t even realize were welling up in her eyes rolled down her cheeks._

_How… How did she die? She said she was okay! She was safe, with Alex! How did she die?!_

_Lena’s legs carried her quickly to the casket, her hands grabbing the lid to throw it open. No one stopped her._

_Please be empty, please be empty, please be empty._

_The scar on her cheek that reminded Lena of the torture they had to endure together wasn’t healed anymore, blood smeared across the open wound. Her face was pale, skin no longer that beautiful sun-kissed tan._

_Kara’s face was relaxed, as if she was sleeping. Lena’s fearful eyes studied her lovers beautiful face, trying to make sense of what was happening. Lena sobbed, her shaking hands reaching out to grab Kara’s cheeks gently._

_“No… No, no, no, no,” Lena whispered through her sobs, leaning down to press her forehead against Kara’s. She squeezed her eyes shut, trying to will Kara back to life._

_The constant whispering in back of Lena got louder, drawing her attention. She started to lift her head, opening her eyes. She gasped, jerking up to stand straight when she saw Kara was staring back at her._

_Her eyes were pale, glazed over in a creamy film. Her skin was starting to turn black around the open gash, a terrible smell emanating from the infection._

_Kara started to sit up, her dead eyes trained on Lena’s. Her mouth opened, an audible groan coming from the back of her throat before suddenly she spoke._

_“RUN!”_

_Her scream was deafening, sounding like she screamed directly into Lena’s ears._

_Lena flinched, throwing her hands over her hears as she stumbled backwards, trying to get away from the thing that wasn’t her girlfriend. It was a pale impersonation of the woman she loved, crawling out of the casket, slowly rotting from the inside out. Black blood spluttered from her lips._

_Just as Lena was about to turn to run, she felt hands grab her. They grabbed her arms, her legs, her torso, her face. They yanked her down to the ground. Through the ground._

_She fell._

_Down, down, down Lena fell._

_She landed roughly into a chair, teetering backwards before the chair righted itself again._

_Lena was back in the basement._

_Kara was with her this time, she wasn’t alone. It was still dark, and instead of Kara being besides her, she was facing in front of her. Lena stared at the body that was slumped forward, blood that looked black in the low light dripping from a bullet wound that had removed the back of Kara’s head._

_“Kara! No! Kara, no!” Lena started to scream. Her voice wasn’t coming from her throat, however. It emanated from around the room, as if coming out of a speaker._

_Lena begged and pleaded for Kara to sit up, the tears that she had felt roll down her cheeks in the previous dream following her to this dream as well. She thrashed against the zip ties that held her to the damn chair, feeling them bite into her skin._

_She thrashed, and thrashed, and thrashed._

_Even when exhaustion started to grip her body, muscles burning and wrists stinging, Lena didn’t stop._

_She screamed, and screamed, and screamed._

_Kara was deathly still. She never responded to Lena’s screaming, a constant trickle of blood running from the bullet hole in her forehead._

**********

Lena didn’t know how long she had been asleep. It felt like she had been stuck in her dreams for years. She awoke with a start, bolting up and out of her chair. It toppled down behind her loudly, blocking out the strangled scream that got caught in her throat.

At first Lena thought she was still dreaming. Her office seemed to haze between her actual office, and the basement of the abandoned apartment. Lena looked frantically around the basement- no, her office? No, now it was the basement again. She was so confused, stumbling from around the bloody chair that had once held her- no, wait, that was just her desk?

Regardless of what it was, she stumbled around it, her head throbbing. Tears were blurring her vision as Lena looked around, trying to find Kara’s body. She had to get them out of here. She had to bring her baby home. Dead or alive, Kara wasn’t staying here.

Lena opened the door at the top of the stairs- or was that her office door?... She tripped over her own feet, but managed to catch herself on the railing of the catwalk outside her door. She looked around through her tears, unable to make sense of where she was.

It looked like she was in her apartment, but there was a weird haze that also made it look like the sleeping area of the Emerald Dragons, where Kara had managed to kill a handful of Dragons without them noticing.

Did one of them wake up before she could reach them? Had they captured her?

“Kara?!” Lena called out, trying to see if maybe she was just hiding. Maybe she was safe, and the body she saw in the basement was just some cruel imposter. Just like the body in the casket.

Someone stirred, drawing Lena’s attention. She couldn’t see their face, but they were too short to be Kara. Lena’s eyes went wide, fear spiking through her as she struggled to sit up. The figure spoke, but it made no sense. That only scared Lena more.

“N-No… Get away!” Lena looked around for some sort of weapon, but the room- or was she still on the catwalk? It was getting so confusing –had nothing in it that she could grab. Instead, she just continued to scream at the figure that had stopped at the end of her stairs- just across the room full of cots?

The figure continued to speak, but stopped when suddenly the door- the elevator –opened. Kara walked through, the tired look on her face turning to confusion as she made eye contact with the figure. She turned and looked at Lena, who felt a rush of relief upon seeing her lover.

Whoever Kara switched her worried gaze to was starting to speak, saying something that sounded far off and distant. Lena was still trying to hold herself up on the railing, her legs shaking. She was so exhausted from trying to break through the restraints in the basement.

Kara started to speak, her voice muffled. Lena was able to make out some of it, hearing something about someone having an episode, and that, “She’s stuck in a flash back.” What did that mean? Why was Kara talking to this person?

“You can go, I’ve got this handled,” Kara’s voice started to sound much clearer. The figure looked from Lena, then back to Kara. Ammarah… The figure looked like Ammarah. Whoever it was, they quickly moved to gather a small pile of things from their cot- no, it was the living room. Lena was now certain she was looking down at her living room.

The figure- Ammarah –quickly hurried out of the apartment, calling the elevator that was already awaiting her. Kara was watching Lena, her face stoic but her eyes dripping with worry. As soon as the elevator doors firmly closed, she started to move up the stairs.

“Lena,” Kara’s voice soothed, sounding much closer and not muffled at all anymore. She outstretched her hand to Lena, who reached out to take it with no hesitation. Kara’s hands were warm and reassuring, gently pulling Lena closer.

Kara’s chest felt warm and safe as Lena was pulled into her lover. Kara wrapped her arms around Lena tightly, gently rocking her. “Can you tell me where you are?” Kara whispered, her voice strong and reassuring.

Lena didn’t respond for a moment, reveling in the warmth that her girlfriend emanated. “Uh… The apartment?” She was relatively sure of her answer, having now realized that the figure was Ammarah, and that she wasn’t in any actual danger. It was still hard to trust herself, though. She’d moved around so much; it was so hard to make sense of it.

Kara hummed in confirmation, her arms moving to hug lower. In one quick movement Lena felt herself lifting, realizing that Kara was picking her up. She automatically wrapped her legs around her lovers unfairly trim waist, feeling her arms support just under her butt.

They went into Lena’s bedroom, Kara not turning on the light. She simply walked them over to the bed, kneeling onto it so she could crawl into the center of the mattress. Kara didn’t let go of her, even as she laid down, holding Lena tightly as she rolled onto her back.

Lena loosened her legs, straightening them out a little, but she didn’t move to roll off of her lover. She felt warm, and safe. Lena could feel the stress and confusion starting to leave her body. “You said you wouldn’t be home till late?” Lena whispered, having no idea what time it was.

Kara nuzzled her face into Lena’s hair before she answered. “Baby, it’s 3AM… We had to wait for Alex’s phone to charge, and then had to drive across town to get to her car so we could tell the tow company where to pick it up. I dropped my sister off, then I came straight home.”

Lena had been sleeping for a lot longer than she thought. That must be why she felt so exhausted; she’d been dreaming that entire time, having to fight off nightmare after nightmare. Lena remained silent, not knowing what to say. She could sense that Kara was upset, wondering if she was angry at her.

Her question was answered with 3 sweet words that Kara whispered into her hair. “Are you okay?” The newly discovered love in Lena’s heart swelled 10 fold for Kara. She tried to get impossibly closer to her lover, eyebrows furrowing with emotion.

“I was just resting my eyes… I thought I’d be fine, but… It was so much worse than it’s ever been.” Lena swallowed hard, feeling Kara’s arms tighten. Lena couldn’t see her face, but she could feel her jaw tense as her teeth clenched. “I’m so, so sorry Lena… I didn’t mean to stress you out so much by leaving.”

Why was Kara apologizing? None of this was her fault; she wasn’t responsible for Lena’s emotions. Finally, Lena shifted so she could look up at her girlfriend, giving her a confused look. “Don’t apologize, baby… You couldn’t control what happened with Alex. I’m not mad… It was just a really long day… I didn’t realize how important my schedule was to me until it was all messed up.”

Kara looked down at her, understanding in her eyes. “When someone experiences a trauma, they often find something to control because of how little control they had during the whole thing… I think for you it’s your schedule, and knowing what’s going to happen next in your day.” That made sense. Lena had always been big on keeping things scheduled and organized, but it seemed to get so much more obsessive after the Emerald Dragon attack.

Lena wiggled her arm from between herself and Kara, reaching up to touch her lover’s cheek. It was so good to see that scar was healed, and her eyes were a clear sea blue. Her thumb rubbed the scar that stretched just across Kara’s cheek bone, studying her face.

Blue eyes watched her intently, her face soft as she leaned into the touch. “Do you want to talk about it?” Lena knew that ‘it’ referred to her nightmares. Lena’s instant reaction was to say no; to run from the fear that crept up her throat. She swallowed the emotion, deciding that the best way to understand what was going on in her brain was to talk about it.

She explained the dream; how it started in darkness, then turned into her lover’s funeral. Kara watched her speak, unreadable emotion crossing through her face every once and a while. It was a mixture of sadness and worry, obviously distressed to hear how much Lena had been holding in until now.

At the end of her dream, Lena explained how she couldn’t tell reality from flashback, which is why she had been yelling at Ammarah when Kara had walked in. Her girlfriend pulled her back into her chest, sniffling as she held back visible tears. Lena herself felt a burning lump in her throat, trying to swallow it down to no avail.

Again they both went silent, Kara taking in the information that had been given to her. As Lena listened to her soft heartbeat, a question popped into her head. Kara had gone through the same exact thing that Lena did- worse, if she was being completely honest –yet she didn’t seem phased in the least bit.

Lena shifted again, but didn’t look up at Kara. “What do… Do you have dreams, too? You haven’t talked about what happened and… Is it because you’ve seen worse?... _Felt_ worse?” She was referring to Kara’s time in the Army, and her secretive past as a Special Forces soldier.

Kara didn’t respond verbally, but Lena could feel her nod her head, her heart beat picking up in Lena’s ear. “I’ve dealt with enough to know how to deal with my own trauma… Some days are harder than others, but for the most part I’m experienced enough to work past it.”

“How?” Lena immediately asked. She was tired of the dreams- tired of the anxiety and fear. She wanted to return to normal, or as normal as her mind would let her. As much as she cared for Kara, she didn’t want to completely rely on her being around, because as today proved, she wouldn’t be around all the time.

The warmth of Kara’s hand stroking up and down Lena’s back felt comforting, soothing her enough that she could feel how tired she was starting to get again; her sleep earlier wasn’t true sleep, and only served to make her more exhausted. 

“I write things down… If I have a dream, or I’m struggling with a memory I start to write it down. It lets me process the memory without getting stuck in a loop of flashbacks… Although it’s taken me a while to perfect it; I used to get stuck in the memory no matter what I did.” Lena pressed her forehead against Kara’s collar bone as she listened.

Once or twice Lena did notice that sometimes Kara would grab a scrap of paper to write something on, or start writing on her laptop out of nowhere. She never questioned it, figuring Kara had remembered something that needed a reminder for later. It made a lot more sense now, considering Kara tended to shove the paper in her pocket as if it was something she didn’t want to look at.

Lena was starting to feel the grips of sleep pulling at her brain. She was so, so tired. With her lover here, it was so relaxing and safe. She wanted to talk more, ask more questions, but they were starting to slip through her fingers like water.

Kara seemed to sense her girlfriends slipping consciousness, because she started to move around. She never left the bed, only sat up to pull off her suit jacket and button up. She kicked off her shoes that had been hanging on the edge of the bed, careful not to get the covers dirty.

After removing her belt and pants, throwing them down to the ground, Kara started to undress Lena. “I can… Do it,” Lena sleepily mumbled, causing Kara to chuckle low in her chest. The sound warmed Lena’s chest, causing her to smile fondly.

Staying completely limp, she let Kara undress her to her undergarments, tugging the duvet and sheets from under her so she could get under the blankets. Kara crawled under the blankets with her, snuggling close. “Will you be okay enough to sleep?” Kara checked, looking her girlfriend in the face.

Lena nodded, feeling content and safe in Kara’s arms. “Yeah, I think so… I have you here, so I know I’m safe.” Kara smiled sweetly, kissing Lena’s forehead like she always does. The gesture sent tingling warmth spreading across Lena’s skin as she closed her eyes.

There were no more nightmares, Lena’s mind filled with dreams of the woman she loved, safe and sound. _She_ was safe and sound, knowing that the strong arms around her would keep her safe.

**********

Lena watches as Kara dances around the kitchen in only her socks, boxers, and a baggy t-shirt. They had woken up together that morning, Kara offering a sleepy Lena some breakfast. Of course Lena agreed, so here she was now, watching her dorky girlfriend dance in front of the stove to some random 80’s song.

She laughs, smiling wide as Kara does a terrible Footloose sort of shuffle over to the breakfast bar that Lena sat at. She had a silly smile on her face, leaning in to kiss Lena sweetly. It was obvious she was still trying to make up for Lena’s terrible day yesterday. She’s already doing a good job, taking Lena’s mind off of the dreams and flashbacks.

Kara dances back over to the stove, flipping the sausage in the pan before dishing out the cooked scrambled eggs between the two plates sitting out. There were already hot pancakes on the plate, butter melting on top of them. Kara finished the plates up with the cooked sausage a minute later, turning off all the burners and setting the cooling pans in the sink.

Lena grabbed the plates, bringing them over to the table. She had already grabbed them some orange juice and utensils, so all they had to do was sit and enjoy Kara’s amazing breakfast. Lena took her first bite of eggs, mouth watering at the flavor. 

“God, this is amazing,” Lena admits. Kara blushes slightly and smiles, a humble look on her eyes as she goes to take her own bite. As much as Lena loves Kara’s cooking, she also found out rather quickly that watching the woman she deeply cares for making her food kind of turned her on. Today it was amplified, seeing Kara dancing around and being her true, goofy self.

The 2 of them chat casually as they eat, Lena grabbing the dirty dishes as usual when they both finish. Kara follows her into the kitchen, talking about some funny blog article she had read the other day while Lena’s back was turned to her. She washed the dishes, putting the rinsed plates and forks into the dish washer.

It didn’t take her long to finish, quietly listening to Kara talk as she worked. When she dried the last pan and put it back in its proper location, she noticed that Kara had gone quiet. She was watching Lena, a small smile on her face.

Lena raised an eyebrow at her lover. “What?” She asked, confused by the sweet look she was getting. “Nothing… It’s just really hard to ignore how beautiful you are.” Lena felt her cheeks blush, eyebrow raising higher. She looked down at her wrinkled PJ pants and tank top, knowing that her hair was a mess in its bun.

“I think you need to get your glasses checked out, baby. They’re not working too well,” Lena scoffs, walking over to where Kara leans against the counter. She takes the black frames off her lovers face, fogging them up with her breath and rubbing them clean with her shirt before slipping them back onto Kara’s face.

Kara laughs, her smile growing as she very visibly looks Lena up and down. “Oh, there we go. Now I can see that you’re even more gorgeous than I thought,” Kara stubbornly replies, wresting her hands on Lena’s hips. She pulls her in, laughing even more at Lena’s playfully stern face.

“There’s no way you can convince me you look bad, baby girl,” Kara whispers as she leans down to kiss Lena. It’s soft and sweet, automatically making Lena sigh and relax against her girlfriend. Kara’s thumbs rub against Lena’s hips as her fingers tighten, sending a quiet shock of heat through Lena’s spine.

She silently wonders how Kara is able to get her heart racing with just a simple touch. Lena reaches up with her arms, wrapping them around Kara’s neck as they hold the kiss for a moment longer. Kara pulls away, but only half an inch.

Her hands start to wander to Lena’s back, slipping under her shirt to slide up her back. The dull heat that Lena felt quickly becomes sweltering at the simple touch. “You know,” Kara whispers, her lips brushing Lena’s, “I never got to keep my promise about continuing yesterday morning.”

Yesterday morning?... What happened yester- Oh yeah… They had spent the night before in a tangle of sweating, panting bodies, yet Lena was still in the mood to keep going later that morning. Kara had to leave, but she said a veiled promise of continuing later that day.

Lena swallowed thickly, wondering how just one person could have so much sex appeal. “Only if you want to,” Lena whispered back, briefly kissing the temping lips in front of her. She watched as Kara’s eyes physically darken, a smile pulling at her slightly wet lips.

Kara moves them so now Lena’s the one being pressed into the counter. She put her hands back behind her, bracing herself as Kara’s hands start to explore Lena’s ribs and abdomen. “How could I not?” Kara whispered into Lena’s ear, sending a shiver down her spine.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lena half expected for Kara to pick her up and put her on the counter, but when she felt the knee press between her legs she realized that wasn’t going to happen. Kara softly kisses along her neck, refraining from nipping like she usually does.

Her lips are hot and wet as they trail across Lena’s skin, already causing her breathing to become uneven. Normally she isn’t one for spontaneous sex, but after watching Kara dance around the kitchen all morning her mind pounces on the opportunity with no problem.

Kara’s hands move to Lena’s hips, her thumbs hooking into the baggy shorts that hang loosely from her body. They crumple to the ground quietly, Lena’s heart picking up as she watches Kara study her body. Next is her shirt, which is lifted up just enough so her breasts are exposed.

Lena hadn’t been wearing a bra, so nothing stopped Kara from leaning down to start kissing along the tops of her breasts. Kara is sweetly soft, despite the obvious hunger in her face. She doesn’t bite, or add to the marks splattered across Lena’s chest already. She handles her like a delicate flower, afraid to damage her.

Burning hot hands start to greedily palm Lena as Kara continues to kiss along her chest, moving up to her collar bone. Even though Lena doesn’t mind it when Kara starts to get rough with her teeth- honestly it’s one of her biggest turn ons –she’s enjoying the slowness. It matches how the morning has been going, making her feel comfortable.

The feeling of Kara’s tongue as it licks along the length of Lena’s collar bone is almost pleasurable. Lena’s breath hitches slightly as she feels a calloused thumb starting to brush along her nipple, bumping into the erect bud.

Lena can feel her arousal pooling, knowing that she was definitely going to need a shower after this. She shifts her hips, feeling Kara’s thigh pressing against her. She’s half tempted to start grinding against her girlfriend, but Kara seems to read her mind, because she drops a hand from her chest to push Lena’s hips against the cabinet.

Kara’s fingers pinch gently, causing Lena to gasp and arch her chest. Jolts of feather light pleasure shoot out in electric spikes at the sensation. Lena can feel Kara smiling against her skin, knowing the effect she’s having on her girlfriend.

She doesn’t tease for too long, knowing that there would be plenty of other situations to do that. Instead, she decides to give Lena what she wants easily. Her mouth moves up to Lena’s neck again, her right hand trailing down her lovers flexing stomach.

With her left hand, Kara picks up Lena’s leg, wrapping it around her waist and holding tightly on to her. She doesn’t remove Lena’s panties, simply slipping under them as she presses hot, wet kisses to Lena’s neck. She hasn’t even touched her and Lena’s already panting.

Kara dips her fingers through wet folds, her lips pausing as she feels how utterly wrecked Lena is. She pulls away from Lena’s neck, looking at her turned on face. She raises an eyebrow, silently questioning why Lena’s so wet just from simple touching.

“Shut up,” Lena pants out, her body screaming for Kara to move her fingers. Kara scoffs at the harsh, but joking words, smirking. “What would you like?” Kara politely asks, referring to how Lena wants to be fucked. Lena swallows hard before responding. “I want 2… Inside.”

Her request is instantly granted, Kara slipping her middle finger in, pumping in and out a few times before filling Lena with her ring finger. Lena gasps, her arms lurching from behind her to tightly wrap around Kara’s neck.

She pulls Kara into a deep, passionate kiss as Kara slowly pumps her fingers in and out. She doesn’t have a general rhythm at first, simply allowing Lena to get used to the stretching sensation. After a minute, however, she starts to actually start to curl her fingers in smooth motions, pressing up into Lena’s walls.

The sensation is indescribable, pleasure rolling through Lena in waves with each slow, firm thrust. It’s not fast, or aggressive, Kara keeping the pace slow and passionate instead. She allows Lena to pull away from their kiss to catch her breath.

Lena’s hips buck slightly, Kara’s grip tightening along her thigh as she holds her right leg up. Never in her life had she dreamed of getting fucked in her kitchen, but here she was… Getting fucked in her kitchen. Lena quietly wondered what it would be like if she was actually sitting on the counter and Kara was wearing an actual strap on.

The daydream was quickly forgotten- for the moment –the pleasure distracting Lena from thinking of anything but Kara’s fingers pumping inside of her. She could hear her moans reverberating off of the apartment walls, her head tilting back as her back arched every so often.

Kara was whispering her encouragements as usual, calling Lena a good girl and telling her how beautiful she looked. She planted a few kisses along Lena’s throat, smiling as she felt a moan vibrate across her lips.

The pace was kept slow, and honestly Lena was thoroughly enjoying it, but suddenly Kara added her thumb to the mixture. The slow, casual pleasure that rolled through Lena’s hips quickly became a constant spike, feeling the tough thumb pad circling over Lena’s clit.

Her deep moans quickly became high and breathy. Each thrust felt like it was setting Lena on fire, and Kara’s thumb was only speeding up that process. Lena gripped onto Kara’s baggy shirt for dear life, and she rested her head on her lover’s broad shoulder.

Kara shifted so she was as close as possible without messing up her rhythm or angle, working Lena up to her orgasm with perfect hands. Lena’s mouth was dry, and her throat was already starting to burn from all the air she was gasping in, but the pleasure between her legs was too distracting.

One of Lena’s hands switched to grasp a little higher on Kara’s shirt, scratching her skin through the cotton. Kara flexed at the touch, softly moaning into Lena’s ear. The high, breathy sound is what sent Lena careening over the edge.

Every single muscle in Lena’s body tensed, her body contracting against Kara’s fingers. That didn’t stop her from continuing to thrust deep into Lena, smiling against her temple as Lena rested her chin on Kara’s shoulder.

The orgasm was blinding, wracking Lena’s body with each wave. Pleasure built on top of pleasure until it slowly started to ebb away. Eventually Lena was able to take a deep breath, realizing she had been holding it

Kara eventually removed her hand from between Lena’s legs, casually licking off the sticky-sweet cum that was on her fingers. Lena shifted her head so she was burying her face into her lover’s neck, still trying to catch her breath. Her thighs were trembling, struggling to hold herself up.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Kara set Lena’s leg down, moving to gently rub her lover’s back. She sweetly kissed her shoulder, waiting for Lena to come back to reality. Lena was too busy focusing on the feeling in her chest, staying in the warm arms of her girlfriend.

It felt so safe and sweet against Kara’s chest. Lena chased after that feeling of love that buzzed inside of her, holding onto it tightly. She didn’t realize how much she had wanted this, having only just discovered this hidden feeling the day before.

Now, however, the feeling was overwhelming. She smiled at the content sensation it brought her, feeling happiness mixing with the love. Lena had always been taught that love was something to fear, but now that she can actually feel it for herself it’s not nearly as terrifying as she thought. Not even with the worry in the back of her mind, wondering if Kara felt the same way.

It didn’t matter, though. _”Damn… I’m really in love, aren’t I?”_ Lena thought to herself, feeling Kara’s hands rubbing along her skin.

But suddenly, they weren’t… Lena felt Kara take a half step backwards, causing her to look up. She had an incredibly confused look on her face, eyebrows furrowed and eyes wide in shock. “Uh… What?” Kara asked, her blue eyes darting all over Lena’s face.

Fuck… Lena had said that out loud, hadn’t she?...


	14. Chapter 14: Down with the Queen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lena, Kara, and Maggie help Alex solve a murder case involving Lillian.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Time to start wrapping this up, guys! I loved writing this story, but I don't want to drag it on for too long. I've got one more chapter in me, which I'll be posting some time this weekend I assume. Till then, I hope you enjoy this (dramatic) chapter!
> 
> I listened to sad Star Wars music while writing like 50% of this... Kinda explains a lot.  
> -Aries

Kara’s heart was hammering in her chest as she stared at Lena. She looked terrified, her green eyes wide and her jaw moving up and down as she tried to figure out what to say. “I- uh… I... Mm… Uh… Nothing!” Lena suddenly dodged between Kara and the counter, escaping only for a second.

Strong arms wrapped around her waist as Kara lifted her up. Lena started to flail, Kara’s face pressed awkwardly into her back as she held her up. She walked them over to the living room as Lena continued to kick and flail, screaming at Kara to put her down.

She got what she asked for, Kara tossing her onto the couch before grabbing her wrists, pushing them against the soft cushions while her knee pressed just enough weight on her underwear clad hips to keep her from bucking.

“Tell me what you just said!” Kara’s voice came out loud and panicked, her chest gripped with anxiety. Had she heard Lena right? Did she actually love her? Kara _needed_ to know before she let herself get her hopes up. If Lena denied saying the words that Kara heard, it might just break her heart.

Lena tried to kick and fight some more, but Kara was heavier and stronger than her. After 30 seconds she fell limp against the couch, tears in her beautiful green eyes as she refused to look at Kara. Her hair was scattered across the cushion, and her cheeks were a bright red as her eyebrows knitted together creating that little crease that Kara honestly found adorable.

“Lena,” Kara panted, her voice much softer, but still scared, “Please… I need you to tell me what you said… _Please_.” Lena finally met her eyes, realizing that the tears in hers matched the tears in Kara’s. Her lover’s hands loosened against her wrists, realizing she was squeezing way too tightly.

At first Kara thought Lena wasn’t going to answer her, her tears now dripping down onto Lena’s cheeks. Feeling the hot liquid drip onto her face seemed to break Lena’s silence, a flood of words coming out of her mouth.

“I think that I’m starting to have serious feelings for you, and that makes me very, very afraid- I learned yesterday that uncertainty scares me,” Lena rambled, pulling her hands from above her head to momentarily cover her mouth and face, as if she was scared to be watched.

Kara leaned back, removing her knee from Lena so she could sit up and skootch into a ball as she resumed her speech. “You’re the person I want to constantly be with- you’re on my mind 24/7… But I don’t know if you feel as strongly as I do.”

Now the tears that had been forming in her eyes mixed with Kara’s tears on her cheeks. They were both crying, both of them scared about what the other had to say. “Honestly I don’t blame you if you don’t feel the same way, because yesterday was such a mess and I feel like loving me would be such a full time job, and you already watch after me all day every day.”

Kara opened her mouth to retort that she didn’t think loving Lena was a full time job, but Lena was on a roll and refused to stop. “And I don’t want to force my feelings on you, so I didn’t say anything, but I guess now it’s a little too late to take it back… Although I don’t think I want to. I’m tired of being afraid and ignoring my feelings so I’m just going to throw this out there…”

Lena took in a deep breath. “I’m in love with you, Kara Danvers.”

There was a long moment where Kara didn’t say anything, trying to process the words being said to her. It took a few seconds for her brain to kick-start itself back up, but as soon as she did Kara started to cry more.

The relief that gripped her heart felt almost as good as hearing Lena say that she was in love with Kara. She could let herself feel the hope that she’d been shoving back. As emotion flooded her chest, Kara suddenly moved forward, grabbing Lena and pulling her into a tight hug, her arms wrapped tightly around her lover.

Lena seemed to pause for a moment, surprised by the action. Slowly her arms surrounded Kara’s head, allowing her to push her face into her chest. Kara took in a deep breath. Vanilla and berries. Memories of every single time they hugged like this engulfed Kara’s mind.

“You have no idea how happy I am to hear you say that,” Kara mumbled into her girlfriend’s chest. She could feel the confusion radiating off of Lena, her head shifting so she could quietly speak into Kara’s ear. “You’re… Happy?” The fear that had been in her voice melted away as her body started relaxing fully into the hug.

Kara shifted so she was sitting properly on the couch, her back resting against the top cushion as she moved Lena into her lap so she was straddling her legs. She lifted her head out of Lena’s chest, pressing a hand gently against her lover’s cheek.

She felt Lena lean into the touch, her eyes searching Kara’s. Both of them were still slowly crying, but it was no longer out of fear, but relief. “I’ve been wanting to tell you how much I love you ever since we actually got together, but… I knew you cared for me, I just assumed it wasn’t as much as I had secretly hoped.”

Lena’s eyebrows raised as they furrowed together with emotion. “You love me, too?” Her voice was so quiet and delicate, sounding almost childlike. Kara chuckled, smiling sweetly to help relax her girlfriend. “Of course I do, baby… I love you more than life itself. How could I not? You’re literally perfect.”

Any sort of fear that had remained in Lena’s heart visibly dissipated, her eyebrows relaxing as she finally allowed herself to trust Kara’s words. She surged forward, capturing Kara’s lips in hers. It was deep and passionate, not like any kiss they’ve ever had before.

Kara’s hands respectfully gripped Lena’s hips, her fingers digging gently into the soft skin. Lena’s hands tangled into blonde, messy hair, her fingernails scraping Kara’s scalp. They refused to let each other go for the longest time. Even when their lips parted neither of them moved away from each other.

“Can you say it one more time?” Lena whispered, her forehead pressed against her girlfriends. Kara smiled wide, chuckling low in her chest.

“I’m in love with you, too, Lena Luthor.”

**********

Kara listened to Lena as she typed on her computer. They were back at L-Corp, having returned 4 months ago. The Emerald Dragons were starting to relax with their attacks against the Immortals, but Kara still felt it was necessary to keep increased security on Lena.

Whenever they walked to and from the car to any sort of building, Kara had a second Immortals with them. She favored Maggie, who proved herself to be a worthy security guard after spotting a car that had been following them when Kara had been too busy navigating through an unknown detour due to a closed road that they would normally take back to Lena’s apartment.

They lost the car easily, Kara pulling through an apartment complex and taking a few looping turns before she decided it was better to take Lena to a safe house for the night, instead of leading them back to her apartment. Maggie earned a ton of praise from both Kara and Lena, Lena making the comment that she’d like Maggie to substitute for Kara whenever it was needed.

But now they were currently both working on their computers in Lena’s office. It was a busy day that had only just started, Lena mentioning she had back to back meetings all afternoon. Kara didn’t mind, although she found the science talk to be boring. She did make an effort to listen, however, so she could talk to Lena about it, trying to validate Lena’s love for L-Corp and science.

Kara glanced at the time, seeing they had about 15 minutes before the next meeting started downstairs. Judging by the deep sigh that Lena let out, she also noticed the time, looking up into a random direction. She had a displeased look on her face, openly showing her boredom in listening to people rambling about problems that could be easily fixable.

“We should go out for lunch today… Get out of the office for a little while. We could go back to the apartment and I could make us something if you don’t want Maggie to hang around.” Kara leaned back in her seat, resting her chin on a hand as she watched Lena’s gaze focus on her.

The beautiful green eyes that Kara loved the most about Lena seemed to sparkle in amusement as she mirrored Kara’s posture. “I wouldn’t mind some of your cooking right now… We could do that amazing grilled cheese with that left over tomato soup you made last night?”

The smile that spread across Kara’s face almost hurt with how wide it was. She refrained from standing to go and kiss her lover, knowing that someone could walk into the room at any moment. Instead she just settled for trying to project her affection with heart eyes, agreeing to the meal choice.

Lena sighed, saying she had some work to finish up before they went downstairs, returning to her computer screen, although she seemed to be in much higher spirits now. Kara quickly pulled out her phone, texting Maggie and letting her know that she’d be needed in a few hours to aid in the escort to and from the car.

Eventually Lena pointed out the time, standing and grabbing her light jacket from the back of her chair. It took all of Kara’s will power to push her smile back, admiring her lover before they both moved to leave the office.

Kara led the way into the elevator like always, feeling her phone buzz in her suit jacket right as the doors closed. She expected it to be Maggie texting back, so when she pulled her phone out she was surprised to see it was actually a text from her sister.

Alex was still in town, mentioning how she was struggling with her case a few weeks ago to Kara while they chatted on the phone one night. She was frustrated and hitting dead end after dead end. As Kara read her text, it seemed that she had finally started to make a little more headway, although her wording was cryptic.

_’I need to talk to you about my case. Do you have some time today?’_

Kara raised her eyebrow at the wording, but assumed Alex was just too focused on the lead she had grabbed a hold of to figure out how to write a proper sentence.

_’I’m free tonight, we can call later?’_

Slipping her phone back into her inside jacket pocket, Kara returned to her work. The elevator doors opened, Kara stepping out and leading Lena over to the correct conference room. It was already full of people, all of them patiently sitting.

Kara went and sat in the corner while Lena went to the front of the room, launching straight into the introduction of the meeting. Kara crossed her legs comfortably, watching her CEO Lena effortlessly lead the conversations and questions throughout the room.

Her phone buzzed in her pocket again, but Kara knew better than to start texting in a meeting. She had a job to do, and couldn’t let her sisters text distract her. The meeting would only last for an hour or 2, then Kara could text her back.

Luckily this meeting didn’t derail completely like some of the others had that day, most people able to stay on the same page. There were a few questions that made Lena’s eyebrow twitch in hidden irritation, but only Kara was able to notice the emotion. Lena was scarily good at keeping a professional face on when it came to this sort of stuff.

The meeting ended right at the 2-hour mark, everyone leaving the room. Lena waited till everyone was gone before letting out a deep sigh. Kara fought back her urge to hug her girlfriend, seeing the sag of her shoulders. She was stressed, and Kara wanted to sooth her as best as she could. That’d have to wait till they got home for lunch.

As Kara stood from her seat in the corner, she noticed Maggie standing in the doorway with a polite smile on her face. Kara hated to admit it, but she was starting to picture Maggie as her second in command. 

As much as she liked Ammarah, she was too easily distracted and had missed too many important meeting times and potential hazards. Maggie was constantly alert, and valued Lena’s safety over anything else just like Kara.

“Good afternoon, ma’am,” Maggie greeted Lena, giving Kara a nod. Lena gave Maggie a small, polite smile as she straightened. She still felt the need to be a CEO around Maggie, refusing to let her see the stress that Kara could clearly see.

The trio walked out of the conference room, Kara leading the way while Maggie brought up the rear. They got into the elevator, Maggie moving to stand next to Kara in front of Lena. They were all silent, Kara feeling Lena’s unfocused gaze against her back.

As soon as the doors opened Kara was stepping out, glancing behind herself after she scanned the lobby to make sure Lena was behind her. Lena’s bright green eyes met her blue ones, a silent smile gleaming behind the brilliant color. Kara for the hundredth time today struggled to fight back her smile, turning back to watch where they walked.

The drive back to the penthouse was safe and sound, Maggie politely asking Kara what time she needed to meet them downstairs. Kara quietly wondered if maybe one day she could actually join them for lunch in the apartment, but for day she was focused on helping Lena relax.

Kara answered Maggie’s question with a general time, mentioning that they needed to be back for a meeting around 2pm. The second body guard agreed casually, watching the road as Kara pulled into the parking garage.

Everyone exited the car, Kara opening the door for Lena out of habit before leading the way into the lavish apartment building. They said good-bye to Maggie at the elevators, Maggie waiting until the doors were completely closed before she turned to leave.

Kara remained her usual professional self until Lena put in the pin code to allow them into the apartments, striding into the comforting home first. She made her way to the kitchen, subconsciously pulling out her phone as she remembered the text from her sister.

She started to casually talk to Lena about the past meeting, commenting on how well she handled a particular question that made even Kara bristle in annoyance. Lena was in the middle of replying when Kara looked down at her phone to read what her sister had sent her.

_’Okay. Make sure Lena isn’t around.’_

Kara paused mid-step, her eyebrows furrowing and lips parting in silent questioning as she stared at the text. ‘Make sure Lena isn’t around’? What did that mean? Why couldn’t Lena be there to hear the conversation? Alex knew very well that her and Lena were close- although she wasn’t aware that they’d been dating for about 5 months now –so whatever Alex had to say was obviously about Lena.

It was a bitter reminder about Lena’s side line of work and her family legacy. Kara often forgot that she was technically a criminal… Although with all that Kara’s seen it’s more like she’s just related to a well-known family of criminals. She’s never done anything illegal in front of her, that she can think of.

“Kara?... Kara, is everything okay?” Lena’s voice broke through Kara’s confused thought about why her sister would be asking her to keep something from her boss. She quickly closed out of the screen, slipping her phone back into her pocket.

Lena noticed the hidden action, her bright green eyes piercing as they looked where the phone had disappeared. Kara tried not to shiver at the stare, automatically trying to make something up. “Uh, yeah… Alex was just being really weird with her texting.”

Guilt instantly wrapped around Kara’s throat like a python. She absolutely hated being untruthful to Lena, feeling dirty and unfaithful. Lena seemed to see the discomfort in Kara’s face, her eyebrow twitching upwards for just a second.

It was obvious that she wanted to question Kara, her eyes glancing down to the phone in the inner breast pocket of her jacket again. Kara started to tense, waiting for her questioning but was surprised when nothing came of it.

Lena gave a small grunt, looking suspicious but moving to sit down at the bar top. “So… Lunch?” Lena’s voice was just as tense as Kara felt, sending another pang of guilt through her. Part of Kara questioned why she was even listening to Alex when it came at such a high cost.

Even though she felt so much discomfort at lying to Lena, she also felt the need to her what her sister has to say about Lena before she can accurately judge if Alex’s precautions are necessary. If it meant dealing with this one evil for a greater good, then Kara was just going to have to suck it up.

She turned back to the kitchen, starting to work on their lunch. It was not nearly as relaxing as Kara wanted it to be, feeling even worse knowing that she had ruined their time together for today. She’d just have to make it all up once she was done talking to Alex and figuring out what was so secretive.

Lunch passed upsettingly quick, Lena notably quieter than usual as she ate. Kara tried to act normal and hold a conversation but there was too much tension in the air. So she just dropped it, mentally cursing Alex for being so secretive.

The rest of the day passed just like lunch; a lot of tension and a lot of silence. Kara didn’t know what to say to ease Lena’s mind, because she had no idea what was going through her head. They went through meeting after meeting, Lena getting more noticeably stressed and irritated.

Maggie also seemed to notice the stress as she rode home with Lena and Kara in the company car that they used to go from location to location around the city. She gave Kara a questioning look, but Kara just brushed her off by looking away. By now she was also in a foul mood, Lena’s irritation bleeding into her own emotions.

The duo split away from Maggie at the elevators as usual. Right as the doors opened to the penthouse Lena brushed past Kara, purposefully hitting their shoulders together as she cut in front of her. Kara bristled, but kept her temper under control. She knew Lena was just angry at her for lying, so it’s not like she could blame her for her anger.

Still, that didn’t stop Kara’s, “Hey,” from coming out a lot sharper than she meant. Lena spun around at the aggressive tone, her eyes blazing green fire. “What?” Lena snapped back, the cool tone sending goosebumps across Kara’s skin as she repressed a shiver.

A muscle twitched in Kara’s jaw as she clenched her teeth together. “Can you just… I need to call Alex, then we can talk, okay?” Lena raised her eyebrow as her chin tilted upwards. She looked a lot like CEO Lena right now, and Kara knew that if she didn’t get answers from Alex quickly then they were going to get into a really nasty fight.

“Fine.” Lena turned and stormed up the stairs, going to her office to continue her work. Kara felt her anger rising, but at the same time she still couldn’t blame Lena for her reaction. She took a second to take multiple deep breaths before also going upstairs, trying not to look into Lena’s office as she passed it to go to her room.

She kicked the door closed, pulling her phone out to call Alex. She answered after a few rings. “Hey, are you alone?” Her voice was low and secretive. “Yeah, Lena’s in her office. What’s this about, why do I have to be alone?” Kara started to pace around her room in frustration.

Alex paused, hearing the tension in her sister’s voice. “Is everything okay?” She asked, worried. Kara had to take a deep breath before she replied. “No, but I’ll deal with that later… What’s up with this call being so secretive?”

“You remember the case I’m working on, right? It’s a murder just outside of National City that I’ve been stuck on,” Alex explained, Kara grunting in confirmation. “Well I think I’m starting to make some head way, but it has something to do with the Luthors.” Kara raised her eyebrow but remained silent.

“So this guy, the victim, lives alone in this really shady part of town. He was found in an abandoned warehouse, tortured to death. We went to his house and found that he has this weird obsession with stuffed animals- or so I thought,” Alex continued, her voice quick with anticipation over what she had to say next. “It turns out he just needed an excuse to keep hidden nanny cams around the house.”

Kara only got more confused and impatient. “Okay, that’s weird… What does this have to do with Lena?” She paused in her pacing, looking at a random wall in her unused room. “Because her mother can be seen on the hidden footage- Lillian Luthor was at my victim’s house hours before his death… You can hear her threatening him, talking about obvious gang business.”

So… Because of a hidden camera that Lillian Luthor had missed she’s now tied into this very open murder case… Kara’s instant reaction was to worry about Lena, and how this would affect her. Would she be dragged into this murder investigation as a suspect? That was the last thing she needed while she was doing such important work with L-Corp.

“Can you just wait a second?... If this involves Lena, I really think she should hear about this. I need to tell her,” Kara said after a long pause. “Are you sure? This is her mother, she might try and warn her that we’re getting closer to figuring out this case.” Kara was certain; she couldn’t leave Lena in the dark about something this important.

“Yeah, I want to tell her… I don’t think she’ll say anything to Lillian; there’s no love between them, trust me. I’ll keep you on the line so you can hear, but I’m not going to hide this from her.” Kara’s heart raced with anxiety, worried about how this case was going to affect the woman she loved. “Okay… If you trust her then I don’t mind you saying something.”

Kara pulled the phone away from her ear, realizing that she had at some point sat down on her bed. She quickly pushed off of it, going over to where Lena was sitting in her office. She carefully knocked on the open door, a sheepish look on her face.

Lena looked up from her computer screen, eyes still ice green with displeasure. “Are you done talking to Alex?” Her voice was cold, Kara openly wincing. “Uh, no… She’s actually on the phone right now, but what she has to say involves you, so… May I come in?”

Lena raised her eyebrow, eyes softening slightly. She nodded, gesturing for Kara to enter. She trotted carefully into the room, moving to sit in the chair that was positioned across the desk from Lena. She put the phone on speaker before setting it between the two of them.

“Alex, you’re on speaker. Can you repeat what you told me?” Kara spoke to the phone, glancing over to the curious look Lena gave the small device. Alex explained the case again, but as soon as she mentioned Lillian being involved Lena cut her off.

“Stop- don’t say any more… Where are you right now, Alex? Are you alone?” There was a shocked pause on the other end of the line at the interruption, Kara also showing her confusion. “Uh… I’m in a café right now, my hotel’s kind of cheap and has a lot of creepy guys hanging around.”

Lena straightened, turning to her computer. She clicked around, typing in some information before she addressed the phone again. “Don’t tell anyone else any information you’ve figured out. Saturday afternoon me and Kara are going to meet you at this location,” Lena rattled off an address that Kara didn’t recognize.

“We’ll talk about your case then. For now, it’s not safe to openly speak about it. Go back to your hotel and stay in your room for tonight. If anyone asks you where you are in the case keep saying that you’re stuck on the old evidence. Don’t mention the hidden camera, or my mother.” Alex made a series of confused noises, trying to find a way to carefully ask her question.

“Do you know what’s going on in my case?” Alex asked, the noise of a scraping chair and gathering papers audible in the background. It sounded as if Alex was gathering her case notes and getting ready to leave. “I don’t, but you can never tell who the people around you are.”

The anger was no longer present in Lena’s face, a more serious look replacing it. “Okay well uhm… Then I’ll see you in a day and a half at that location. Thanks for the warning, Lena.” Alex said a good-bye before ending the call, leaving Kara and Lena alone.

“She’s not in danger, is she?” Kara asked, nibbling her lip in anxiety. Now she was worried about Lena _and_ Alex being in danger. Luckily Lena shook her head, eyes drifting to her computer screen in a moment of thought. “No, not unless she goes around telling everyone else.”

The words helped ease Kara’s anxiety slightly, allowing her to relax into the chair a bit. “I’m uh… I’m sorry, by the way,” Kara awkwardly transitioned. Lena looked back at her, eyebrow arching high as her full lips pulled into a thin line.

Kara twiddled her thumbs, feeling like a stern teacher was looking at her. “I wasn’t trying to lie to you, but Alex asked me to keep our call a secret, saying she had some sort of information about you.” Lena’s stern look didn’t go away, making Kara shrink even more.

She’d had a gun put to her head before, but that didn’t scare her as much as the look Lena was giving her now did. Her silence could crush a building with how heavy it was.

“I didn’t know who to be loyal to; my sister or my girlfriend… I just wanted to see what Alex had to say before I went off to tell you about the call. I swear I didn’t know what it was about, and I didn’t want to incriminate you accidentally by you hearing the conversation or something like that.” Kara stared down at her feet that were planted firmly on the ground.

Lena was silent for a few moments longer before she let out a long sigh. Kara carefully looked back up to her lover, seeing her face sinking into a tired look. She closed her eyes and pressed her fingers against her temple.

“Baby, I know you weren’t trying to keep things from me, but… Just tell me next time it has something to do with Alex’s work, and I’ll leave it alone.” Kara felt tears starting to prickle in the corner of her eyes, the stress pressing against her shoulders almost back breaking.

She still felt guilty knowing that her silence had hurt Lena. That was the last thing she meant to do, but in the moment she had no idea how to react. Now looking back on the situation she could have handled her secret keeping a lot better.

Kara sniffled feeling the heat of her tears rolling down her cheeks as she looked down to her feet again. She took in a shuttering breath, her shoulders shaking. “O-Okay… I’m s-so sorry, Lena. I swear I didn’t want to hurt you.”

The sound of Lena’s chair rolling away from the desk quickly made Kara look up. Lena was already on Kara’s side of the desk, stepping into her space so she could wrap her arms around Kara’s head, bringing her into a tight hug. Kara instantly wrapped her arms around her lover, her tears flowing faster as they landed against Lena’s blouse.

“I know, baby, I know… It’s okay, I’m not upset anymore. We just need to communicate a little bit better. I think we both handled that situation poorly.” Kara’s arms hugged Lena in closer so she had to place her knee between Kara’s legs on the seat for balance.

Lena stroked her girlfriends back, her hair carefully scratching through the tight bun high on her head. “Can we go cuddle in bed?” Kara sniffled into Lena’s chest. She felt the low vibrations of Lena’s chuckle rumble in her chest, the sound soothing.

“Of course, my big tough baby. Let’s go,” Lena replied softly. Kara made a disgruntled noise at the nickname, but she knew it was kind of accurate; for someone who’s in her line of work she certainly cried a lot.

Kara relaxed her arms so that Lena could take a step backwards, smiling sweetly as Kara’s red and puffy face. As she stood Lena stepped up onto her tip toes to kiss the trail of tears away before taking her lovers hand and leading them to the bedroom.

They both crawled into the center of the massive bed, Kara kicking off her shoes as she hugged Lena in close. She wasn’t crying anymore, but she kept hiccupping every once and a while. Lena just squeezed her tighter each time she hiccupped, smiling against Kara’s chest.

With all the stress and emotion of the day it didn’t surprise Kara that she started to get so sleepy. Lena seemed to also be tired, her body completely relaxing against her girlfriend. They seemed to recharge one another as they cuddled, no longer angry or riddled with guilt.

Slowly Kara started to drift off to sleep, nose breathing in deep breaths of vanilla and berries. Just before she started to doze off into her dreams she heard Lena softly whisper, “I love you, Kara Danvers… I always will.”

**********

Kara quietly stirred the large amount of sugar into her coffee. She had awoken well before Lena, the sun not even having risen over the horizon. She had woken up an hour ago, trying to get back to sleep in the warm bed she shared with Lena. However, Kara found her mind wandering around the topic Alex had spoken about to her.

She moved over to the couches in the dark living room, curling her legs to the side as she grabbed her laptop from the coffee table as she sipped her overly sweet beverage. Setting the cup off to the side, Kara started to look up the Luthor name.

Straight away she found the online records for the incarceration of Lex Luthor. It was a public inmate record that gave a brief description of what Lex had been charged with. Kara clicked on the link, her gaze being met with the intense glare of a bald man with a well-manicured beard.

He looked nothing like Lena, an ugly snarl permanently stuck on his features as he glared at the camera taking his mugshot. Kara let her curiosity guide her, scrolling down to look at where he was being held and why.

There were a lot of technical terms that Kara only vaguely understood, but from what she could tell Lex had a long list of reasons why he was currently being held in a high security Nevada penitentiary. To start with he had been charged with vehicular man slaughter, assault of a police officer, evading arrest, attempted murder, fraud, identity theft, and a lot of other serious charges.

Kara was certain he wasn’t getting out of prison any time soon; his sentence listed 50 years with no chance of bail for quite a long time. That meant that- if Lillian somehow did manage to go to jail –all of the duties of leading the Immortals would fall on Lena.

Would she take the offer? She had no love for her family’s business, openly talking about how she much preferred to work on L-Corp than the Immortals. Maybe she would just let the mafia die, or give it to some other family to take care of. Regardless, Kara silently hoped Lena could get this constant target off her back for good.

Tomorrow they were going to meet with Alex to speak about this case. Kara assumed they were going to look into the evidence Alex had, to see exactly what she could use against Lillian. Would Lena help in the case- going directly against her mother in a plot of treason –or would she keep herself distant from what was about to happen.

No matter what Lena did, Kara was going to have to figure out who exactly to bring with them to go see Alex. The victims home was in a dangerous part of town, and the crime scene was in an even worse area. There was no way she could properly keep Lena _and_ her sister safe on her own.

Kara’s mind first went to Ammarah. That idea was quickly thrown out the window, however. She’d been part of the Immortals for such a long time that asking her to help bring down its leader would surely end in disaster. Ammarah was loyal to the Immortals, which meant she was loyal to Lillian, the true leader of the mafia.

So if not her second hand, then who? Not Finn, he wasn’t at all trust worthy either, and would be in the same category as Ammarah. Kara stared blankly at the top of her laptop screen, her mind running through all the names she knew that were somehow involved in the Immortals.

As Kara zoned out, Lena appeared, looking over the catwalk banister at her lover. “Why are you up so early, baby?” Lena asked, her hair a mess and her eyes noticeably sleepy even from 20 feet in the air. Kara smiled sweetly to Lena, loving how adorable she looked half awake.

“Just thinking about tomorrow, love… Do you want some coffee?” Kara’s blue gaze followed Lena as she shuffled down the hallway, making her way downstairs. She was just about to get up, setting her laptop back onto the center table when Lena shook her head, making her way over to Kara.

She moved to sit down on the couch, cuddling close into her girlfriend’s side. “No, I just want to be with you… You’re thinking about tomorrow?” Kara wrapped an arm tightly around Lena’s shoulders, hugging her tightly as she rested her cheek against Lena’s head.

“Yeah, I’m just wondering who’d be willing to help me out with keeping you and Alex protected. It’s not safe where we’re going, but I need to be able to trust the person helping us.” Lena hummed in sleepy agreement, visibly trying to get her brain to work so she could help out.

The 2 women sat there silently for a long moment, Kara trying to run through her list of names for the third time. “What about Maggie?” Lena’s suggested seemed to be rather off-handed, but the name set off a light bulb in Kara’s head.

She would be perfect for something like this! Maggie had no love for the Immortals- she said it herself that she enjoyed her time in the Navy more than her time as a criminal for the mafia –so therefore had no loyalty to them.

“Oh, baby, that’s perfect!” Kara gasped in excitement, smacking her thigh at the ‘ah-hah’ moment, causing Lena to jump and lean away to look at her groggily. Kara laughed at her squinted eyes and furrowed eyebrows, mumbling her apologies as she leaned in to kiss Lena.

She felt Lena grin against her lips, pulling Kara back into the kiss when she started to lean away. Kara’s love for Lena- not just because of her brilliant suggestion –filled her chest, spilling over the edges. How had she managed to get so lucky?

“When do we see Maggie next? On our way to work?” Lena sighed happily as she moved to lay across Kara’s lap, resting her head on her lover’s thighs. Kara confirmed her question with a hum, instinctively starting to run her fingers through Lena’s silky hair.

Kara pulled out her phone to text Maggie, typing with her free hand.

_’Can you come up to the apartment this morning? Lena and I would like to talk with you about a possible shift you might like to take up.’_

The text was simple, vague enough so that someone who read the text wouldn’t know what they were talking about. Lena had made sure to put the meeting with Alex in her schedule as a random meeting with a fake name, just in case Lillian asked her what her day was going to be like tomorrow.

It took Maggie about 45 minutes before she responded, Kara assuming she had only just woken up.

_’Of course, I’ll be there within the hour.’_

Kara relayed the message to Lena, who had started to drift off to sleep in her lap. Lena grunted but made no sign of movement to stand up. Kara scoffed at how sleepy she way, bending forward just enough to brush the tip of her nose against Lena’s ear.

“Baby girl… Come shower with me? It’ll wake you up.” Lena almost head butted Kara with how fast she sat up. She grabbed her lovers hand and dragged Kara off of the couch, practically running upstairs. Kara couldn’t help but laugh as she was pulled into the master bathroom.

Lena didn’t even start the shower, turning around and grabbing onto the collar of Kara’s sleep t-shirt. She stood up on her tip toes, passionately pressing her lips against her girlfriends. Kara was still laughing, the noise vibrating across Lena’s skin as they heavily made-out.

One very unproductive shower later they were both basically clean- they _did_ rinse off right before they both exited the shower. Kara dressed into her usual uniform while Lena changed into a sexily tight pencil skirt and a blouse that had a plunging neckline. It almost made Kara wonder if they could resume their previous shower activities, but knew that Maggie would be there any minute.

Kara had just made it downstairs, adjusting her collar when she heard the elevator ding just before the doors opened. Maggie stepped into the penthouse, smiling to Kara as they spotted each other. “Hey, good morning,” Maggie greeted happily.

Lena appeared at the sound of another voice, mirroring Maggie’s polite smile as she came down the stairs to meet with them. “Thank you for coming up here, I know it’s out of your way,” Lena said as she gestured for Maggie to sit with her and Kara in the living room.

They all took their seats as Maggie spoke. “It’s not a problem; Kara told me you guys had a shift offer for me? I’m available pretty much any time.” Kara sat on the edge of the couch, Lena moving to take a comfortable chair next to her. “Well it’s not exactly about the time’s your available that we’re worried about,” Kara admitted.

“It’s about what we’re doing during those times that’s probably going to seem questionable,” Lena finished for her girlfriend, exchanging a look with her. Maggie looked confused, glancing between them. “Uhm, okay… What exactly are you guys planning on doing?”

Kara was the one who spoke, Lena watching her as she explained carefully. “Do you remember when I interviewed you, and you admitted that you had joined the Navy to get out of the Immortals so that you could properly help people? You told me that you wanted to leave the Immortals one day, and the only reason you were here was because the Immortals were the only option you had.”

For a moment Maggie looked afraid, her brown eyes switching from Kara to Lena. “I swear, ma’am, I’m not going to rat you out or turn-“ Maggie started to ramble, obviously thinking she was in trouble. “No, Maggie, you misunderstand the reason we’re asking you to join us,” Lena cut in front of Maggie’s words.

“We need your help going to the north side of the city, so that we can look into a murder investigation that involves my mother. Kara can’t protect me and our informant on her own, and you seem trustworthy enough to bring along.” Maggie furrowed her eyebrows, looking confused.

“Wait, are you trying to bury this evidence?” Kara shook her head, but it was Lena who replied again. “No, we’re trying to find out more so that we can create a case against my mother and send her to prison.” Lena spoke the truth so blatantly that it surprised both Maggie and Kara.

There was a pause where Maggie was visibly taking in all the information she was being told. “So you’re asking me to help, because you trust that I’ll keep silent about what you’re doing?”

“We’re asking you to help because we know that your loyalty doesn’t run with the Immortals; it runs with the person you’ve been put in charge of protecting- in this case it’s Lena and our informant,” Kara explained. She agreed with Lena’s precaution to keep Alex’s identity a secret until it was absolutely necessary to exchange names.

Maggie sat back against the small loveseat she sat on, her eyes drifting to the coffee table as she took a second to think. “Okay… I’ll help you.” Relief blossomed through Kara’s chest, happy to hear that her and Lena’s judgement was correct.

Lena’s stoic face broke into a smile at the news, nodding her thanks. “Perfect… Then we’ll be taking a trip to the north side tomorrow in the morning. Please tell no one about this; If anyone asks, you’re just helping with my escort to a meeting with a random L-Corp investor.”

They spoke for a few more minutes about the ‘meeting’, Kara listing her expectations on how things should go. They both agreed that Kara was to watch primarily after Lena while Maggie guarded their informant. Kara had to admit that she felt a little bit of anxiety about entrusting her sister to another person, but she knew Maggie would keep her safe.

Once everything was arranged for the next day they left for L-Corp. It was a simple day filled with Lena working on the computer and going to meetings. They did leave for a few hours to go talk with a partner of L-Corp, Ammarah aiding Kara due to Maggie’s busy schedule that afternoon.

At one point the partner had to leave the room to answer an important phone call, leaving Lena, Ammarah, and Kara alone in their office. Kara expected the silence that settled over them to stay, but suddenly Ammarah spoke up.

“So I see you’re working well with the new girl,” She spoke in her usual bubbly tone, Kara silently questioning why she was bringing this up _now_. She didn’t verbally respond, just slowly nodding her head with visible confusion on her face.

Lena glanced back at them, eyebrow raised at Ammarah. “What?” She asked defensively, gesturing to Kara as she continued to speak. “I was just wondering what’s so cool about the new girl? Is she hot? Does she have a nice rack? Come on, you can tell me!”

Suddenly Lena turned around completely in her seat, green eyes blazing in anger. “Ammarah- Stop talking! This is incredibly unprofessional.” The door opened before Ammarah could even open her mouth to reply, the partner walking back into the room. They paused, looking confused as they glanced between Lena and her guards.

Lena quickly made up an excuse, brushing off the exchange easily. The partner didn’t seem to care to question the interaction, returning to work. Kara sat silently, her jaw clenched in anger over how childish Ammarah was being.

The rest of the meeting passed without either guard saying a single word. They stood with Lena as she said her goodbye’s to the partner, quickly making her way out of the building. As soon as they were in the warm summer air Lena launched into a tirade.

“Do I even need to explain to you how unprofessional that was, Ammarah?! Not only should you not be talking about another co-worker like that, but you most certainly shouldn’t be talking like that during an important meeting!” Lena didn’t look back as she yelled, but Kara could see the tension in her shoulders.

Ammarah was silent as Lena yelled, a defiant look on her face. They got into the car, Kara driving them back to L-Corp. There was a palpable tension in the air as they all sat quietly. Once Kara parked and they all piled out of the car they made their way up to Lena’s floor.

Lena split off, mumbling that she needed to use the rest room, leaving Kara and Ammarah behind. Kara watched with a frown as the private bathroom door closed. As soon as it shut Ammarah scoffed. 

“Sheesh, what bug crawled up her ass? The way she defended that new chick makes me wonder if maybe they’re sleeping together- Is that why you’re letting her work with you so much? So your boss can get her rocks off?”

That was the last straw.

Kara’s hand shot out, grabbing Ammarah by the bicep like she was a child, dragging her towards one of the many glass conference rooms that seemed to never get used on this floor. Ammarah tried to fight against Kara, but her grip was iron as she dragged her former second in command.

She practically tossed Ammarah into the glass room, slamming the door closed. She didn’t care if people could see her screaming, but she knew the glass was sound proof enough that they couldn’t hear exactly what she was saying- although the floor was practically empty, only Jessica and 3 other people sitting at their desk.

“What the hell is your problem?! Why are you suddenly being so rude?” Kara’s voice raised, her face flushed with anger. Ammarah rubbed her arm, mirroring Kara’s expression. “What’s my problem? Seriously?! You replaced me with some random bitch and expect me to be okay with it?”

Seriously? That’s what this was about? Ammarah was jealous of Maggie getting all of Kara’s attention?

“I’m using Maggie more because she can actually do her job- unlike you. You’re constantly late, you talk way too much, and you’ve put Ms. Luthor in more danger than actually protecting her.” Kara didn’t soften her words, too angry with how she spoke to and about Lena. The last thing Kara needed was a loose cannon on her team.

“Damn, tell me how you really feel, Kara!” Ammarah took a step forward, moving to shove Kara on both of her shoulders. Instinctively Kara smacked her hands away, deflecting the push. The heel of her palm struck Ammarah in the chest, Kara using all her strength in one arm to shove her away. 

Ammarah stumble, only able to catch herself on the wall behind her before she hit the ground. Unbridled rage pooled in her features as she stood, shoulders squared as she started to draw her fist back to charge at Kara.

Lena’s voice cut through Ammarah’s attack. “What in the hell are you 2 doing?!” Lena’s voice was loud, and it made Kara flinch at how stern it was. Jessica appeared from behind her, a look of fear on her face as she looked between Ammarah’s seething face, and Kara’s scarily calm look.

Jess quickly explained what she saw to Lena, Ammarah trying to yell over her to call her a liar. Kara felt her irritation starting to build all over again; the fact that Ammarah could become so childish just because she was jealous infuriated Kara.

It only took a stern look from Lena to make Ammarah stop talking, her jaw snapping shut as she glared at Jessica. “I’ll leave Kara to decide what to do with you, Ammarah. She’s the one you tried to attack.” Kara watched Ammarah bristle, mentally preparing for her to try and charge again.

Luckily she knew better, realizing that Kara was more skilled and considerably stronger than she was. “You’re off the security team, Ammarah. I don’t want to see you anywhere close to Ms. Luthor, or this floor. You’re a hazard that I’m not willing to risk.”

Ammarah glared before storming out of the room, practically running to the elevator. Kara didn’t let her shoulders relax until she heard the ding of the doors opening, and the thud of them shutting. She turned to Jess and Lena, the redness in her face going down.

Kara thanked Jess for her help as a witness, Lena nodding in agreement before she turned and started to go to her office. Kara followed, trying to hide her sheepish embarrassment as she turned to close the double doors.

As soon as they were firmly closed she turned to Lena. “I am so sorry, I didn’t mean to-“ Kara’s head smacked the door due to the force of the sudden kiss. It surprised her, Lena pulling away as quickly as she leaned in.

Kara blinked multiple times, trying to figure out what warranted the kiss. “Uh… What?” Kara mumbled, giving Lena a shocked look. Her girlfriend was smiling wide, and it was then that Kara realized she was holding her phone for Kara to look at something on the screen.

Taking the phone, she could see a picture of a calendar listing a time and an address multiple months ago. Kara furrowed her eyebrows, looking up from the phone. “There’s more, swipe through,” Lena instructed, watching her with a giddy smile.

There was another picture of what looked to be a traffic citation that had been mailed into L-Corp. It was a piece of paper with multiple pictures of Lillian in a car, including a zoomed in picture of her face, and her license plate. It looked like Lillian had run a red light, and this was the ticket they sent her.

“I’m still lost,” Kara mumbled, eyebrows furrowing. When did Lena get these pictures? Why was she even taking these pictures? “Look at the dates.” Lena was practically bouncing up and down by now. Kara looked back at the pictures to see that the traffic photo was time stamped the same day as the meeting written in the calendar.

“Uhm… I mean I can see that she was in fact at the meeting she said she was supposed to go to, and although the ticket _is_ kind of expensive, I don’t think this is going to send your mother to jail.” Kara spoke the last part a little bit low, stepping away from the door so no one could hear.

Lena sighed, looking slightly impatient that Kara wasn’t putting her clues together. “Do you recognize the address in the calendar?” Kara had no idea where the address was supposed to be, only seeing that it had the same zip code that Alex’s victim’s body was found in- they had talked about the case when Alex first started it and Kara had to pick her up after her car died.

It took a few more moments before Kara put 2 and 2 together. Her eyes lit up, looking up to see Lena smiling at her, seeing she finally understood. “Wait, so that means…” Kara started to pace, looking back at the phone. 

“My mother has documented evidence that she was in the same part of town Alex’s victim was found… When was his time of death again?” Lena finished Kara’s sentence, looking wildly excited. Kara glanced back at the door, hoping no one was around to hear. 

“Don’t worry, it’s sound proof in here.” Lena reassured, noticing the look.

“Oh, that’s kinda cool- but yeah, the time of death… I can’t remember for sure, but I’d bet you 20 bucks it’s the same date that’s on this traffic citation.”

“We need to keep these pictures safe, so we can give them to Alex for her case… It’ll help with whatever evidence she’s got against my mother.”

“How did you even get these pictures anyways? I’ve been with you all day,” Kara wondered aloud.

“The nice thing about being related to a crime boss is that you know she hates camera’s in her private area. There’s no security footage linked to the elevators, stair wells, or our office floors… All I needed was a distraction, which you managed to provide without even knowing,” Lena explained with a brilliant look in her eye.

That distraction must have been when her and Ammarah had gotten into their loud fight, drawing all the attention away from Lena so she could run up the stairs to her mother’s apparently empty office. The fight felt completely worth it, now.

Kara didn’t stop Lena from stepping in close to hug her, both of them giggling as they celebrated quietly. “This might actually work… I might be able to keep us safe,” Lena whispered against Kara’s neck, her fingers tightening in her jacket in excitement.

**********

Lena, Maggie, and Kara all rode quietly in the car. Kara drove, as usual, following Lena’s directions as she pointed out the streets to turn on. They were in a rather dilapidated part of town, driving to an old park to meet up with Alex.

They had taken Maggie’s personal car just to be careful with anyone possibly tracking them. Lillian hasn’t properly talked to Lena in months, staying distant from her daughter, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t keeping an eye on her. There could be no way she suspected Maggie to be involved in anything like this.

It didn’t take much longer before the trio pulled into the weed covered parking lot. There was only one car sitting in the sun bleached lot, Alex getting out of her car as soon as she saw theirs pull up. None of them got out, instead Lena opened her door in the back for Alex to get in.

Alex got situated, mumbling a greeting as she scooted into the car. “Hey guys… Oh, uh… I see there’s a new face,” Alex looked to Maggie, who had turned in her seat to look back at Alex. “Maggie Sawyer; I work with Ms. Luthor and Danvers.”

She outstretched her hand, Alex politely shaking it. “Alex Danvers. Kara is my sister.” Maggie looked surprised, glancing to Kara as she pulled out of the parking lot. They didn’t want to be seen sitting somewhere for too long around here.

“I didn’t realize Kara had such a beautiful sister,” Maggie casually flirted as she moved to sit straight in her seat again. Kara could hear Alex scoff out of embarrassed flattery, eyeing Maggie with a quirked eyebrow.

Lena changed the subject before Alex could say anything in reply to Maggie’s sweet comment. “Can you direct Kara on where the victims house is?” Kara could see the stress in her lovers face, knowing that driving around in such hostile territory was a scary thing. She had to admit she could also feel her own stress weighing down on her shoulders, struggling to keep a brave face on.

Alex directed Kara, using her phone GPS to help out. It didn’t take long for them to reach the marked off house. Once everyone was out of the car- Maggie and Kara doing a quick check of their surroundings –they took a moment to actually talk.

“So does everyone know about this case?” Alex asked, turning to the group. Everyone but Kara shook their heads, Alex quickly explaining what she’d been working on for the past 4 months now. “The victim’s name is Erick Clark, 38 years old, died in a warehouse a few miles from here from loss of blood. He’d been tortured to death.”

Kara glanced over to Lena, noticing her eyebrows had furrowed at the name. “Do you know him?” Kara asked, looking at the concentration on her lovers features. “He’s a known helper for the Emerald Dragons in this area, is that why?” Alex offered. Lena’s eyebrows raised in surprise as this information.

“Then I think I just figured out why he was murdered; He’s supposed to be an Immortal.” Kara quickly pieced together what Lena was talking about; Erick Clark was a spy, giving valuable Immortal information to the Emerald Dragons. Lena probably didn’t even realize he was dead considering she was so uninvolved with the Immortals now and days.

Alex looked shocked by the new information to the case. She quickly grabbed a small notebook from her back pocket, scribbling down notes. “So what evidence do you have against my mother that involves Erick’s house?” Lena asked, turning her attention to the rather dilapidated building.

The roof was in terrible shape, a ton of weeds in the over grown grass, and a broken window that was covered up with duct tape. Alex turned to look at the building as well before looking back at Lena. “I think it’s easier that I show you…”

Kara thought she had a general idea of what she was going to walk into, considering Alex had told her about Erick’s fake obsession with stuffed animals. However, when she walked into the house her expectation was blown out of the water.

Every single wall was covered in book shelves that overflowed with stuffed animals. From floor to ceiling was nothing but plushies. Their bead eyes glittered in the light shining from the doorway as the group walked into the house. All of their faces had a creepy sort of smile, and Kara felt like she was being watched.

The house smelt musky, like dust and water damage. The further Kara walked in with the group the worse it seemed to get. The living room had display table after display table in the center of the room, covered in toys.

Maggie whispered words of awe as she slowly looked around the room from behind Alex, eyes wide in shock. “I didn’t realize Erick was so…. Strange,” Lena mumbled, silently agreeing with Maggie’s distress. Alex stopped in the living room, turning to the group as they followed her. 

“That’s what I first thought, but the further I got into Erick’s life the more I felt like this was all fake… It’s just too much, and he showed no signs of this obsession when he was younger- so say his parents.” Alex gestured around the room as she spoke. “It wasn’t until I was actually _looking_ at the animals that I realized a few of them felt off. They were placed too perfectly in corners of the room, concealed with other animals on top of them and to the sides.”

She stepped over to a teddy bear that looked like someone had tried to hide it by putting it behind multiple other plushies. Alex brought the bear over, showing the group. “That’s when I realized that he just needed an excuse to put up camera’s without people being able to tell that there were camera’s.”

Flipping the bear over onto its stomach, Alex showed the Velcro backing. She pulled it open, revealing what looked to be just a voice box and battery pack. As she gutted the bear, however, the group realized that there was a nanny cam inside the bear.

Lena looked up to Alex, taken aback by the oddly genius way of hiding the camera. “So this is how you got the footage of my mother… What was she doing here?” Lena looked around the living room with a frown, trying to piece everything together.

“Yeah, she was here 2 days before my victim was found dead in that warehouse… The tape had audio, so I was able to hear that she was threatening him- saying something about choosing the wrong side. It makes a lot more sense now that I know he was a snitch for the Dragons.”

Alex started to put the bear back together as she spoke. “So I have a clear picture of her threatening Erick, but I still can’t place her at the warehouse during the murder.” She sounded frustrated, obviously stuck at a dead end.

“Well then you’re lucky Lena thought of checking her mother’s office yesterday,” Kara said with a smile, realizing that their information was going to be much handier than she thought. Alex quirked her eyebrow, looking between her sister and Lena.

“We have pictures on my phone of her calendar and a ticket with her face and car plate putting her in this area on the day I’m certain was the day Erick Clark died,” Lena explained. Alex quickly confirmed the date of death, Lena nodding as it lined up with the photos on her phone.

There was visible excitement in Alex’s face, realizing that she was no longer stuck at a dead end. “We need the physical copies of the calendar and ticket, but I’m certain we can get a warrant to search her office for that,” Alex mumbled more to herself than anyone else.

“Holy crap, guys,” Maggie spoke for the first time since they started compiling evidence. There was second hand excitement in her eyes, glancing around the group. “You’re actually going to be able to do this… You can actually stand a chance in bringing Lillian down.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Am I aware that I turned Ammarah into a bad character last second, and that there's no way Lena could have actually reached Lillian's office, searched her desk, and then returned all in the time it took for Kara and Ammarah to get into a fight? Yes... But I'm the god of this world and I say that Lena has super sonic legs or something... Idk.
> 
> I'm too tired to fix the plot holes,  
> -Aries


	15. Everything Must End

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lena testifies against her mother in court.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A lot goes on in this chapter, and I time jump through multiple months. I hope you enjoy the last chapter of Immortals, everyone!
> 
> I'll say a proper goodbye at the end of the chapter <3  
> -Aries

Kara heard the yelling before she could even see who it was coming from. Both Lena and her looked up, making eye contact as they simultaneously recognized the voice. Kara was up and out of her seat before the double doors of Lena’s office flew open, standing between Lena’s desk and the figure barging into the room.

Lillian’s face was bright red, her nostrils flared and her hair a wild mess in its up-do. She stopped just short of Kara, about to run into her broad chest had she not noticed her quickly enough. “Get out of my way,” Lillian snapped, her eyes blazing with rage and panic. Kara stared her down, refusing to move.

Kara could hear Lena standing from her chair in back of her, but she kept her eyes on Lillian’s glare. “What are you doing barging in here?” Lena asked in a cold tone. In all honesty both Lena and Kara knew why she was there; Alex had managed to get a warrant to search Lillian’s office, and the police were currently upstairs tearing the room apart for any evidence to the Erick Clark murder case.

“They’re in _my office_!” Lillian screeched like a bird, looking past Kara to her daughter. Lena feigned a very convincing shocked look, eyebrow flinching upward as her lips pursed and eyes widened. “Who is? Why are they in your office?” Lena asked, moving around closer.

Lillian took the bait, too flustered to see past her daughters lying. “The _POLICE_! They’re searching through all my things! I wasn’t even given a warning, Lena. I didn’t have time to hide the books!” Lillian looked like she was on the brink of tears. She was fanning her face with her hands rapidly, stepping around Kara to fall into her daughters unexpecting arms.

Kara fought the urge to make eye contact with her girlfriend, standing stoically in the background as Lena continued to play dumb as to what was going on. In reality Alex and her had specifically gone to an officer who wasn’t in the Immortal’s pocket. They gave over the evidence with incredible secrecy.

When the officer had asked Lena why she was turning against her family, she explained her reasoning due to L-Corp and her desire to get out of the criminal life style. Considering Lena hadn’t fully taken over the Immortals yet, she was technically clean; there was no record or Lena personally doing anything against the law.

Lillian sobbed, Kara internally wrinkling her nose in disgust. She felt no pity for the woman who basically tortured the person she loved the most in this world. Kara could see the slight downward turn to Lena’s mouth as she looked blankly at her mother as she sobbed against her shoulder.

“They’re going to find everything! We’re going to be put on trial- Kara, can’t you do anything about this?! You’re a trained killer, I’ve seen your number of confirmed kills in the Army, you could do this without batting an eye,” Lillian suddenly pushed off of Lena to turn to Kara, who couldn’t hide her look of disgust this time.

Kara’s fists clenched at the mention of her Army career. It took everything in her keep her voice calm as she spoke, “I’m here to protect your daughter from any physical threats. I’m not in the business of taking innocent lives.”

Her blue eyes were piercing as she glared at Lillian, daring her to strike her. Lillian looked like she was about to raise her hand to slap Kara, but Lena’s voice spoke over their staring contest. “Mother, there’s nothing you can do. Killing won’t solve this problem.”

Lillian turned to look at her daughter again, the glare ebbing away to a look that resembled distress. “There is something I can do; I can fight it… I need to go call my lawyer so we can start a case to fight against this.” She strode off, purposefully bumping into Kara’s solid shoulder in attempts to piss her off.

Gritting her teeth, Kara watched her walk away, both Lena and her moving to the doorway to watch Lillian leave. She had just gotten to the elevator when the sound of boots thundering down the stairwell could be heard through the closed door.

Lena’s first reaction was to go check out the noise, strolling past Kara despite her calling out to stop. She got to the door with long strides, opening it up just in time to see 3 officers chasing a figure down the stairs.

She stepped onto the platform the door opened up to, Kara close behind her, just about to tell her to get back inside when suddenly deafening gunshots sounded just below them. In one swift movement Kara shoved Lena against the wall and used her body to cover her; she was wearing a Kevlar vest, unafraid of getting hit by any stray bullets.

Lena gasped, squeezing her eyes closed and she tried to get smaller under Kara, covering her ears. Kara’s own ears rang painfully as multiple more shots rang through the stairwell. The sound of someone grunting could be heard on the landing below them before everything went silent.

Kara didn’t pull away from the wall straight away, waiting 5 extra seconds before cautiously shuffling towards the railing of the stairs to look down below them. She could see the 3 officers perched on the stairs across from her.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Looking down further Kara could see the body directly below them. Finn was hunched against the wall, blood pooling around the floor he sat on. His head was slumped to the side, chin resting on his collar bone as his eyes stared blankly at the floor.

The look of shock on his face slowly slackened as the life leaked from his body. The still smoking gun clutched in his hand clattered softly to the ground, the sound echoing in the stairwell. In his opposite hand he held what Kara could easily recognize as the traffic citation that was the main evidence against Lillian.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It looked like Finn had tried to grab the ticket, knowing it was going to be used against his boss. When the police chased him, he must have pulled a gun; which is what Lena and Kara walked in on. Kara felt a pang of sadness strike through her chest as she watched the man she’d gotten decently close to let out his final breath.

When Lena started to shift away from the wall, Kara turned to her and pressed a hand against her shoulder. “Don’t,” Kara warned simply, giving her a telling look. Lena’s eyes fluttered close, eyebrows furrowing in the same sadness Kara felt.

One of the officers seemed to finally notice the 2 women standing just above them, starting to move up as his colleagues went to retrieve the ticket in Finn’s hand. “Did you see where Lillian Luthor went?” He asked firmly, looking between Lena and Kara.

Kara moved to poke her head through the stairwell door, glancing across the office. Lillian was nowhere to be seen, probably having taken the elevator down while the 30 second gun fight was happening. Kara stepped back into the stairwell, frowning.

“I think she ran,” She admitted to the officer, noticing Lena bite her lip in anxiety. The officer frowned, quickly turning to his radio. He called to the other officers in the area, telling them to keep an eye out for Lillian. Lena gave him the make and model of her mother’s car without hesitation, the officer thanking her.

Kara ushered Lena away, walking her back into her office. Jessica and the others on the floor gave them a shocked, questioning look before they walked into the room. Lena turned to them, taking in a deep breath before speaking to the room.

“If everyone could please remain calm, and stay on this floor of the building until I’m told it’s safe to leave. Everything will be okay as long as we listen to the police.” Lena clasped her hands in front of herself as she watched everyone anxiously return to their work.

Lena, Kara, and the police officer that sent out the APB all went into Lena’s office. Kara stood protectively in back of Lena as she sat at her desk, the officer taking an offered seat across from her. He started to ask questions about where Lillian could possibly go.

The Immortals had a total of 10 known safe houses spread all across the city. Lena listed all of them, but Kara added on 3 more that only Lillian and herself knew about. Lena glanced up at her lover, an impressed look in her eyes.

After some more questions about Lillian Lena was finally able to ask her own questions. “What will happen when she’s caught? Is the evidence enough to convict her straight away?” Lena anxiously picked at wrinkle in her pants as she crossed her legs behind the desk. 

“We have quite a bit of evidence against her, yes, but that doesn’t mean she can’t plead not guilty. Most likely there will be a trial if she does that, but unless she has evidence to disprove ours it’ll be hard for her to convince the judge and jury to let her go.” Lena’s shoulders relaxed hearing this, although Kara still felt the buzz of anxiety about how there was a slim possibility that Lillian could get away with this.

The officer adjusted the hat he held in his hand, glancing down at it. “We’ll have someone clean up the mess in the stairwell, and we can inform the next of kin if you’d like us to. I apologize for the violence.”

Lena’s face remained stoic, her green eyes flickering towards the door of her office as she remembered Finn. “I’ve seen worse, but I understand and appreciate why it had to happen. Don’t bother with the next of kin; Finn didn’t have anyone outside of the Immortals.”

Another wave of sadness washed over Kara, feeling guilty that someone’s life was taken away because of all of this. The officer nodded in understanding, frowning. “I’ll make sure your cooperation is put on record, Ms. Luthor. You’ve been a big help in both Erick Clark’s case, and now your mother’s.”

Lena gave a polite smile before standing to escort the officer off of the floor. He walked to the stairwell, opening the door to reveal the smell of sickly sweet iron that emanated from half a floor down. Kara’s nostrils flared at the scent; a sharp reminder of why Lillian needed to be stopped.

**********

Lena mumbled gently in her sleep, nuzzling against Kara’s neck as she rested against her chest. She had fallen asleep while they were cuddling on the couch, laying flush against Kara’s front. Of course Kara didn’t mind, absolutely loving the contact. She held onto her girlfriend with strong arms as she lazily watched the TV.

6 months had passed since Lillian disappeared. When she left a large handful of Immortals left with her, including Ammarah. Alex had moved into Kara’s old apartment while Kara continued to live with her girlfriend, continuing to work on the Erick Clark case despite the clear evidence pointing towards Lillian. Alex said something along the lines of, “I want to make sure she can’t blame this on some innocent person. The evidence needs to be air tight.”

Maggie had quit the Immortals, joining the same freelance security company Kara worked for. Of course Lena hired her to be Kara’s second hand, allowing them to work as proper partners. Kara accepted the mentoring position, teaching Maggie the ropes of being a body guard so she could use her new skills for later jobs.

Lena and Kara have been together for almost a year now. They were planning on going on a vacation to Rome to celebrate their anniversary, although they were hesitant. With the investigation of Lillian still open it would be unwise to leave the country.

So, for now, they were holding off on celebrating till they were certain it was safe to travel. The Emerald Dragons had finally called off their attack on Lena, instead focusing on creating chaos with Lillian and the 20 Immortals she took with her when she ran. 

Kara secretly hoped someone would find her body in a ditch so this entire thing could be over. It was having an obvious effect on Lena, and it made her heart ache for her lover. She was constantly stressed and found it incredibly hard to relax. It was a mirical that she was actually able to calm down enough to take a nap on top of Kara, but it just goes to show that she hasn’t been sleeping well at night.

The sound of a phone going off made Lena stir gently against Kara’s chest. Kara silently cussed out the cellphone that rang across the apartment, hoping that Lena wouldn’t wake up; she wanted her girlfriend to get as much rest as possible, and not be stressed by work or the ongoing case.

Luckily some supernatural being seemed to be listening, because Lena remained still against her lover. The phone rang for about a minute before it finally gave up. Kara felt her tense shoulders relax as the phone went quiet. She snuggled closer to Lena, hoping her squeezing arms didn’t wake her up.

After about 30 seconds, however, Kara felt her own phone starting to buzz with a phone call in her back pocket. Trying not to groan too loud, Kara carefully lifted her hips and fished out the vibrating device. Alex’s name and face illuminated her screen to show it was her calling.

Kara swiped up to answer, quietly whispering, “Hey, is it important? Lena’s finally asleep.”

“Yeah it’s- Wait… Why are you watching Lena sleep?” Alex’s voice broke off into a confused tone.

“I’m not, she’s sleeping on top of me while we watch movies. What’s important? Why are you calling?”

“Uh, okay. Anyways; it’s about Lillian… Maybe I should come over to tell you in person?”

“Have you guys found her?” Kara tried to not let her voice get too loud, feeling hope starting to rise in her chest. Would this finally be all over?

“Yeah, she was found and arrested in Kansas last night. There’s some more stuff, but I think it’d be best to tell you and Lena in person.”

“Alright, I’ll text you the address and stuff on how to get up to the apartment.”

Alex agreed, hanging up with a promise of seeing her sister soon. As Kara pulled the phone away from her ear, she felt Lena shift on top of her. Kara looked down to see sleepy green eyes looking up at her. “So she’s been in Kansas all this time?” Lena groggily blinked.

Kara frowned slightly, setting her phone down so she could pull Lena higher up herself with both arms. She hugged Lena tightly, feeling her girlfriend press her face into the side of Kara’s head. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to wake you up.”

She brushed through Lena’s loose hair with one hand and rubbed her back with the other. Kara could feel Lena slowly starting to tense up as reality edged its way back into her mind. “We’ll find out more when Alex gets here… Let’s not worry, okay? Thinking about the worst outcome’s not going to help anyone.”

Lena was silent, trying to press further against Kara for a long moment. They didn’t part until Kara’s phone buzzed with a text. It was Alex, warning them that she was walking into the building. With a sigh, Lena sat up and removed the comforting weight of her body off of Kara.

It didn’t take long before the elevator doors dinged, opening to reveal Alex. She stepped into the apartment, Kara greeting her fondly as she met her at the door. Lena waved from the living room, Kara leading her sister over to the couches.

Seeing the stress on Lena’s face made Kara throw cation to the wind; Lillian wasn’t there to threaten her family anymore, so it was safe to be open about her relationship with Lena. Kara sat down next to her girlfriend and wrapped a comforting arm around her shoulder. Lena gave a small smile before she visibly pulled herself together.

CEO Lena sat on the couches, turning to Alex, who watched them with an odd look in her eyes. She was obviously starting to piece the relationship together, a look of realization flashing across her face as she made eye contact with Kara.

“You said there was more information on my mother, Alex?” Lena’s CEO voice spoke confidently. Alex blinked for a moment, trying to get past the shock of her realization. “Uhm, yeah… So she was cornered in an abandoned neighborhood she had been staying in with a small group of Immortals. There was a massive shoot out, and 15 Immortals lost their lives. Lillian was found in the back of the house, alone.”

Kara’s eyebrows furrowed as she listened. So 5 Immortals were now left in the squad that she had taken with her. “Will she be charged with the shoot out? She was the one in charge of that group,” Kara spoke with a frown.

Alex gave a small shrug, mirroring the frown on her sisters face. “She claims she didn’t command them to do anything. She stayed in the back of the house the entire time, taking cover from the fire fight.” So she was playing the victim…

There was a pause where Lena was noticeably taking in the information. Her eyes drifted down to the coffee table as she listened, a blank look on her face. “And where is she now?” Lena finally asked.

“She’s being kept in a high security prison until her trial… Which is what I came here to talk about.” The tone in Alex’s voice told Kara that she wasn’t going to like what Alex had to say next. “Lillian got a hold of her lawyer- which she is legally allowed to do –and had decided that she wants a full trial.”

Kara knew this was going to happen; of course Lillian was going to want a trial. She wanted to get away with as little as possible. Still, she could feel disappointment wrapping around her like a snake. If only life could be so simple. Lillian knew she was going down, but she refused to go down without a fight. She saw a pinpoint dot of light at the end of the tunnel and she was going to do everything in her power to get to that light.

Beside her, Lena took in a deep breath. She held it for a moment, eyes closed before slowly letting all the air out of her lungs. “When will the trial happen?” Her voice was calm and monotone, but Kara could see how her eyebrow twitched and furrowed ever so slightly with stress.

Alex didn’t seem to notice the look, but she had obvious sympathy on her face. She knew how stressful this must be for her sister and her lover. She’d seen case trials rip apart families with how tense and awful they could be. It was heart breaking seeing how unjust justice could be.

“The court has scheduled it in a week. We’ll be gathering witnesses to take the stand, and working with lawyers and all the officers in the case against your mother to gather all the evidence together… Will you be there at the trial?” Alex nibbled her lip as she watched Lena.

It took a moment for Lena to answer. She paused, glancing to Kara’s bouncing foot as she crossed her legs. “I’ll be there, but I can’t take the stand.” Both Danvers women turned to look at Lena in surprise. The thought of Lena not speaking out against her mother because she cared for her crossed Kara’s mind, but Lena quickly put her worries at ease.

“If my mother were to find out that I’m turning against her then she’ll stop at nothing to kill not just me, but everyone I care about,” Lena explained in a serious tone.

Despite the fact that Lena’s concerns made complete sense, Alex still frowned. “Lena, we need you on this case. You know everything your mother’s done in detail- You could seriously sink this case if you don’t help!”

“I’m aware of that, but I can’t put the people I love at risk, Alex- this is your own sister we’re talking about… I can’t promise you anything; If my name is on that list of witnesses and it gets leaked then we’re all as good as dead.” Alex’s eyes flashed over to Kara at the mention of her being in danger.

She visibly struggled with swallowing the bitter pill Lena was handing her, but eventually a look of resolve washed over her features. “Fine… Only because we both agree that we can’t risk Kara’s life. I’ll let the lawyers know you’ve declined the offer to go on stand.”

Kara was silent as she looked between Lena and Alex, her mind racing with hundreds of thoughts. “I’ll need to get started on compiling all my notes, so I’ll leave you 2 to talk… This will be really tough, but we’ve got solid evidence against her- even without your direct help, Lena. Thank you both for being so cooperative.”

Alex stood, her sister quickly following her. She said goodbye to Lena and Kara before grabbing her things and going to the elevator. Lena stood back in the living room, a stoic look on her face as Kara hugged her sister goodbye.

“If anything seems off, please call me straight away. I’ve got connections that can keep you safe. You’re putting a huge target on your back with this case,” Kara whispered to Alex as they hugged. Alex pulled away with a cocky smirk. “I’m always putting a target on my back, it’s nothing new… But thank you, I appreciate the offer.”

The elevator doors opened, allowing Alex to step into them. She waved as the steel closed shut with a soft thump. Kara sighed, her shoulders tense as she pinched the bridge of her nose in stress. She turned to Lena, who watched her with bright green eyes.

“Are you upset with me?” Lena asked point blank, noticing Kara’s deep frown. Kara wasn’t upset _at_ Lena, but she was disappointed in her decision. She couldn’t blame her, however, knowing that she would have done exactly the same if their roles were switched.

Kara walked back over to Lena, taking her gently in her arms. Lena melted into the hug, her fingers digging into Kara’s loose t-shirt. “You know you don’t have to worry about me,” Kara whispered in refrence to Lena’s reasoning for not taking the stand.

“But I do… You already have a target on your back with the Emerald Dragons. I don’t need you to be in direct danger with my mother, too.” Kara was well aware of the danger, but that didn’t scare her. What scared her was the idea of Lillian getting away with everything she’s done by now. If she’s let off the hook, then she’s going to go straight for her daughter.

The thought of Lena’s own mother turning against her was enough to make a burning lump appear in Kara’s throat. “I respect your decision, and won’t push you to go against your instincts… If you’d rather be safe and trust in the evidence we have now, then I’ll trust in it, too.”

Kara could feel Lena relax slightly against her, still holding her girlfriend close. “Thank you,” Lena whispered into her shoulder, face flexing as she furrowed her eyebrows. They both went silent, Kara mentally wishing Alex had waited till tomorrow, so Lena could have continued resting.

After a few minutes Kara pulled away just enough to look at her lover. “You know what we should do?” She smiled sweetly down to Lena, who gave her a questioning look. Without explanation Kara pulled away completely.

She grabbed her phone off of the couch, connecting it to the apartment speakers that were posted around the living room. She found the song she was thinking of, quickly pressing play on ‘Vocalise - Rachmaninoff.

As the music started to play Kara set her phone down. She grabbed Lena’s limp hands and pulled her in close. “Kara,” Lena sighed, looking exhausted yet simultaneously reluctant to relax. “Come on,” Kara whispered as she guided Lena’s left hand to her bicep, “Dance with me… We need a night for ourselves.”

Kara started to sway, doing her usual 4-step waltz that she learned long ago. At first Lena followed her lead stiffly, but the further they got into the song the more relaxed she became until finally Lena started to properly dance along with Kara.

They danced together, Lena allowing Kara to spin her slowly. She started to smile properly for the first time in 6 months. Kara felt her own true smile pull at her lips as she saw the woman she had fallen in love with come out of her shell once again.

For a few minutes they forgot all about the court case and Lillian. It was just Lena, Kara, and the music. It reminded Kara of when they were healing together after the second Emerald Dragon attack; when they closed themselves off from the world and just focused on each other.

As the song pulled to a close Kara spun Lena one last time before dipping her low. Lena loosely hung onto Kara’s neck as she effortlessly held her. They giggled to each other before Kara bent down and passionately kissed Lena.

They stood up, lips still locked together for a long moment. When Kara finally did pull away, she pressed her forehead against her girlfriends. She still giggled, Kara smiling at the wonderful sound that she had missed for so long.

“I love you, Lena,” Kara whispered, sweetly kissing her for a brief moment. “I love you more, Kara,” Lena whispered back, smiling wide as she closed her eyes. Kara was relieved to see that the stress didn’t roll back onto her features as she studied her face.

Their moment together seemed to remind Lena that she wasn’t alone in this burden; Kara was there to help her, and as long as she had Kara she could do anything in the world. Even go directly against her mother.

Kara felt Lena take in a deep breath, eyes still closed as she thought for a long moment. “Come on,” Kara whispered, hoping that she could draw out this moment for a little longer. “I’ll make us dinner, and we can watch some more movies in bed.”

**********

Kara sat on the uncomfortable bench seat, eyes scanning around the large room. Alex was to her left and Lena sat on her right. There were a ton of people sitting in the other seats behind the front row that Kara sat in, a low whisper emanating from the crowed as they waited for the trial to start.

The was the day of the court case. Lena was dressed professionally, her hair up in an intricate bun and her usual lipstick was applied perfectly. As usual her face was completely calm, mouth pulled into a thin line and eyebrows resting naturally. It was the way Lena’s bright green eyes darted constantly around the room that gave away her anxiety.

Kara carefully reached over, refusing to properly look at Lena in fear of giving her affection away, grabbing Lena’s hand that rested between them. Lena also didn’t look over to Kara, but her fingers tightened between Kara’s as she squeezed her hand.

Alex was the only one who noticed the interaction, her head naturally turning their direction as her eyes glanced down. Kara met her gaze, but neither of them made a facial expression as they both looked away. Alex had already questioned Kara on their romantic interactions, and Kara explained the entire situation. Alex had promised to tell no one, Kara trusting her completely.

The entire front section of the court room was empty for quite a long time. A lot of people were early and the judge was taking their time appearing. Kara scanned around the room without turning around completely, relieved to see that she didn’t see any unfriendly faces. The 5 remaining Immortals that had left with Lillian were still missing, and none of the Immortals that remained on Lena’s side had come to the trial.

Maggie hurried down the center aisle right before the judge came out with the jury, scooting down the row to sit next to Alex. Maggie bent forward to look at Kara, whispering her apologies for being so late. She mouthed something about traffic in the parking lot.

That didn’t surprise Kara, considering this court case had gotten a ton of publicity ever since Lillian had been captured a week ago. Winn mentioned he was going to be in the press section of the court room, but that was directly behind Kara, so she couldn’t see him at all.

The judge, a Hispanic woman named Flora Ramos, came from a side room wearing the usual black gown as she climbed up to her desk at the front of the room. A group of 12 jurors also filed into the room, all of them taking the usual oaths before the actual trial started to get introduced.

First the state side came through; The U.S Attorney was a balding man named Eugene Fink who quickly started setting everything up on the same side of the court Kara and the others sat on. He was alone, but Kara figured he had a long line of witnesses to take the stand throughout the case.

Next was the defendant’s side; Lillian walked into the room wearing a dark grey jump suit, her hands and feet were cuffed in front of her with a chain around her waist to connect them. She scanned the entire crowed as the sound of camera shutters clicked behind Kara.

Lillian’s eyes quickly found the raven hair and crimson lipstick in the crowed, her dark eyes landing on Lena. Her face practically glowed red as she realized what side her daughter was sitting; Kara could see the lines drawing together as she figured out how she had been found out in the beginning of all this.

They weren’t even sitting yet, but Lillian leaned over to her attorney. Kara recognized him from when she first met Lillian over a year ago. His name was Jack Sharpe and he looked just as nervous and timid as when Kara first met him. Lillian was whispering aggressively in his ear as Eugene Fink was taking his oath.

Sharpe pulled out his phone, smoothly concealing it as the judge was distracted with Fink. Kara seemed to be the only one who noticed, just about to point it out to Lena when suddenly he put the phone away, right before the judge addressed him. It looked as if he had been texting someone.

Lillian and Sharpe took their oaths before sitting down. Fink was the first to start, addressing the jury as he explained the case. There was a large TV that was pulled forward as Fink talked about Erick Clark’s murder, listing a bunch of dates, addresses, and times of day.

Kara listened intently, feeling Lena’s fingers twitching against her own as she practically buzzed with anxiety. All Kara could do was squeeze her hand a little tighter, her own stomach churning uncomfortably. Fink did a good job of explaining the murder and how exactly he believed Lillian was tied up in everything.

After talking for over an hour on the case it was finally Sharpe’s turn to stand and explain his clients side of the story. Kara realized that the reason she found him so off putting was because he looked like a rat; she quickly found out that he also acted like on, too.

Sharpe spoke smoothly as he paced the court room. He was ringing his hands together the entire time, hunched over at the shoulders. He openly accepted that his client, Lillian, was in fact at the victims house a few days before his death. He also accepted that she had been caught running a red light in the same area as the murder scene.

This was where Kara realized this trial was going to be an all-out war. Sharpe pulled out excuse after excuse as to why Lillian was in that area. He had photo copies of cropped out bank statements showing Lillian’s trail through the city.

One of the larges pieces of evidence that was in Lillian’s favor was that there was a bank statement showing that she was buying coffee less than an hour before Erick Clark’s time of death. Kara felt Lena stiffen next to her, her hand practically crushing Kara’s with how tightly it squeezed.

With that one introduction of evidence the case quickly took a turn. Lillian remained completely focused on the front of the room, but Kara could see just enough of her face to notice the shit eating grin that pulled across her lips. It made her blood boil, hating how smug she looked.

Sharpe was allowed to introduce his witnesses first, calling up an Italian gentleman that looked to be one of the business owners that the Immortals protected. They covered up his true relationship to Lillian by saying he was just a good friend of hers.

The man started to talk Lillian up, explaining how much she helped him by keeping his business up and running. Sharpe introduced a few more characters exactly like this, all of them giving Lillian a shining review of her personality.

Finally, it was Fink’s turn to start introducing witnesses. He started with Alex, calling her up and asking her questions about the Erick Clark case. Kara knew, however, that Alex’s answers were being completely discredited by Lillian’s bank statements.

They were losing, and it was starting to show. It was now 4 hours into the trial, and all of Fink’s witnesses were completely based around Erick’s death. Kara was wracking her brain, trying to see if there was a way that maybe she could ask to be called as witness to speak against Lillian.

The problem was that she never actually worked with Lillian. She never saw her do anything overtly illegal, simply listening to the information that floated around L-Corp on a daily basis. To the court, however, her second hand stories would be considered rumors.

Still, she had to try.

Fink had resigned his questioning for the moment, allowing Sharpe to completely decimate all the opposing witnesses with complete bullshit. Kara was just about to lean forward to whisper to Fink and ask him to put her on the stand when suddenly Lena let go of her hand.

She scooted to the edge of the bench and whispered to Fink. “Put me up there. Ask me about the bank statements,” she instructed, her face set bravely. Fink turned around in his seat, a look of surprise and hope in his eyes. “Are you sure?” Kara whispered, pride rising in her chest as Lena gave a dead set nod.

Fink turned back around, Kara looking back at the court to see that Sharpe had noticed the interaction. His face got pale suddenly, mousey eyes glancing over to Lena. He visibly swallowed hard, turning back to the witness who just got finished talking about how Lillian would never hurt a fly.

“No further questions, ma’am… I’d now like to call up… Uh…” Sharpe hurried back over to his table, looking at a list of witnesses he could call on. He read through them, whispering what Kara could only assume were curse words under his breath as he realized he couldn’t call anyone up without messing up his entire rehearsed case.

Sharpe cleared his throat, standing straight. Lillian finally turned to look at Lena, her eyes blazing with betrayed rage. Lena glared back, her eyebrow quirking slightly in her own silent anger. “Uhm… Mr. Fink can have the floor, Your Honor.” Sharpe admitted the defeat, nervously looking to Lena.

As soon as the witness had walked out of the bullpen Fink stood and turned to the judge. “I’d like to call on Lena Luthor to take the stand.” There was a wave of hushed whispers that went through out the crowed. Judge Ramos quickly silenced the murmurs, calling for silence in the court.

Lena confidently stood, no signs of anxiety or fear that anyone- even Kara –could see. She strode over to the witness stand, taking her oath before sitting in front of the microphone. Fink looked like he got a fire burning inside him again, his posture much straighter and his voice much more confident.

Fink launched straight into what Lena instructed him to ask. “Ms. Luthor, what can you tell me about your mother’s bank statements?” He crossed his arms at the wrist, looking at Lena as she glanced around the room. Her gaze settled on the judge next to her.

“I can say with confidence that the person who used that credit card the day of Erick Clark’s death was not Lillian Luthor,” Lena told Judge Ramos, who looked visibly surprised by her sureness. “And how can you say that with confidence?” Fink asked, visibly trying to hide his smile.

Lena shifted to pull her phone out of her pocket. Kara raised her eyebrow at the move, but she trusted that Lena knew what she was doing. “Because that’s not my mother’s bank routing number at the top of the photocopies,” Lena gestured to the screen that still held the ‘redeeming’ bank statements.

There was another wave of whispers that quickly stopped with a stern glance from Judge Ramos. “Objection!” Sharpe suddenly yelled from his seat next to Lillian, who looked like she was about to combust right in her chair. “How can Ms. Luthor possibly know her mother’s routing number by memory?”

Judge Ramos looked expectantly at Lena. “Can you answer the question?” She asked, head tilting. “Please excuse the informal documentation, but this is my mother’s bank account. You can see a list of all her transactions, well before the date of Erick Clark’s death.” Lena offered her phone to the judge, who looked from the phone to the TV screen to compare both routing number and withdrawn money.

Fink looked like he could have kissed Lena with the evidence she had given. However, Lena wasn’t done. She once again addressed the judge. 

“Your Honor, if I could also draw your attention to the most recent transfers of money, I’m certain that if you were to get a court order to track where each transfer went to you’ll find they were given to bank accounts made a week ago, and then you’ll see that money was again transferred into every single bank account of Mr. Sharpe’s witnesses.”

The court was so quiet you could hear a pin drop. Even Judge Ramos looked surprised with the overwhelming evidence that completely discredited everything Sharpe’s witnesses said. Lena had a stoic face plastered on, but Kara could see her confidence radiating off of her.

Judge Ramos gave Lena her phone back, turning to look at Sharpe. “I’m going to call break here shortly, and I want bank statements of every single one of your witnesses before the end of break… However- if Mr. Fink is done –I’ll allow you to ask Ms. Luthor some of your own questions.”

Fink backed down with a smile, nodding his thanks to Lena before sitting down. Sharpe nervously stood, glancing to the furious Lillian before shuffling to the center of the room. He obviously had no idea what to ask, having been shaking quite a bit with how quickly he was now losing.

Sharpe cleared his throat multiple times before finding something to grab onto. “How exactly do you have access to your mother’s bank statements?” It was a lame question that made even Judge Ramos raise an eyebrow.

“It’s common knowledge that I was being groomed to take over the criminal practice my family runs,” Lena explained smoothly, “so I was given access to the family bank account; which also happens to be my mother’s primary bank account. It’s in her name, and every time she does a transfer she puts in her own personal code- would you also like me to show you that it was her code used to transfer money into your witness’s burner accounts?”

Sharpe bristled realizing his grip slipped as soon as he had caught onto something. “And how can you prove to the court that it wasn’t _you_ who used the pin number? You could have been framing your mother, and in reality those statements,” he pointed to the screen, “Are your mother’s while these transfers are you stealing her identity.”

Lena slowly blinked, frowning at how much Sharpe was just fishing. “Because not only do I not know her pin number, but I can also prove that those statements on the screen are actually my statements.” Lena swelled with power as Sharpe shrunk, suddenly realizing his mistake.

“On that date, at that time, I went to the Steaming Café and got a large black coffee and cup of frozen moca ice cream- I remember because it was my security guard who asked for the ice cream, and I kept making fun of her for eating ice cream like a child who didn’t know how to use a spoon.” Lena looked to Kara, a soft look in her eyes.

Kara felt her face burn bright red in embarrassment, yet she couldn’t help but feel her affection for her lover grow realizing that she actually cared enough about that memory to hold onto it almost 7 months later.

Lena glanced back to the judge quickly, making sure no one noticed the look. Kara also looked around to see if anyone noticed. She locked eyes with Lillian, who’s dark eyes were burning with hatred.

Her daughter talking caught her attention, looking away from Kara. “If you’d like, I’m sure me and Mr. Fisk can get the security footage from that day to disprove my mother’s sad excuse of a lie.” The judge agreed, mentioning that she’d like the evidence after the break as well.

Of course the Judge asked for proof that the bank statement on the screen was Lena’s, so she pulled out her phone and opened her own bank account. The routing numbers matched up, and Lena was able to scroll to the exact statement that was up on the screen.

“Another thing my mother managed to teach me,” Lena said with a bitter twist to her voice, “was that anything can be used to benefit you… Even if it screws over your family.” Lena put her phone away, looking to Fisk who had a very wide smile spread across his face.

Sharpe tried for a few more seconds to think of some sort of question to discredit Lena, but the judge had already had enough. “If you have no more to say, Mr. Sharpe, then I’m going to call for an hour break to allow for new evidence to be scrounged up last minute,” Judge Ramos said with authority in her voice.

Everyone agreed, Sharpe slinking back to the table where Lillian furiously sat. Lena got up from the stand and followed Fisk back to the table. Everyone else in the crowed also started to file out, multiple people standing between Kara and Lena as she stood, looking for a way to get to her girlfriend faster.

Lillian ignored the police officer and Sharpe as she shoved past them, waddling surprisingly fast over to where Lena stood with her back facing her. Lillian shoved Lena, hissing something about how she was going to be sorry she betrayed her family.

Kara leaped over the half wall that divided the front of the room from the back. She took two long strides forward and shoved Lillian so hard that she fell, her cuffs preventing her from putting her hands back to catch herself.

Stepping between Lena and Lillian, Kara felt her face burn red with rage, nose flaring like a bull. The police officer started to lift Lillian up, obviously shocked at how fast she had managed to move in her ankle cuffs. Judge Ramos was yelling something at Lillian, but no one was listening.

“You fucking bitch!” Lillian screamed at Kara. “You’re really fucking my daughter?! You fucking turned her against me!” Lillian was spitting at she yelled, and it took Lena grasping Kara’s bicep to stop her from launching forward to attack her again.

Kara took in a deep breath as she glared at Lillian, squaring her shoulders and wrinkling her nose in disgust. “You turned her against yourself.” The words only served to enrage Lillian more as she was physically dragged away by an extra police officer.

The hand around Kara’s arm tightened, drawing her attention away from the door that closed between Lillian and herself. Lena looked shocked at the interaction, her eyes wide and her face pale. “Come on,” she mumbled, “Let’s get some fresh air.”

Kara agreed silently, placing a hand on the small of Lena’s back as she lead her out of the court room. She spotted Winn in the crowd of reporters asking all sorts of questions to Lena, but Kara shoved aggressively past them all.

Alex and Maggie quickly followed suit, Maggie acting as a guard for Alex. They pushed through the waves of people until all 4 of them were outside in the cold winter air. Kara didn’t even feel the stinging wind against her face, too overheated with anger to notice the cold.

Lena took in a sharp intake of breath next to her at the cold, glancing around the street that was in front of the court house. When she saw no one around them- the reporters stayed inside the warm court room –she suddenly grabbed Kara’s face and yanked her down so Lena could kiss her girlfriend.

The kiss was a shock, but Kara instantly melted against her lover’s lips, hands wresting on her waist politely. The sound of Maggie’s soft, “Oh,” was comical enough that Kara had to pull away, laughing lightly as she looked from Lena’s amused green eyes over to her second in command.

“How uh… How long have you guys been together?” Maggie looked surprised. “Almost a year, next January,” Lena replied as she moved close to Kara, slipping into the long jacket she had been wearing all this time.

Maggie opened her mouth to comment, but something pulled Kara’s attention away from the conversation.

She could hear the cars before she could see them, turning to the sound of screeching tires. It was a singular black SUV that pulled up directly in front of the court house. The doors weren’t even open before Kara wrapped an arm around Lena, literally picking her up off the ground as she ran backwards to a 4-foot-high concrete planter bed to the right of the court house.

Maggie and Alex ran in the opposite direction to an adjacent wall, Maggie protecting Alex with her body as the ran low. As soon as they slid behind the wall a hail of bullets reigned down. Alex was cussing, covering her head as dirt reigned over her and Maggie.

At first Kara’s instant thought was it was the Emerald Dragons, but she was certain they were smart enough to just let the Immortals self-destruct by themselves. Then the memory of Sharpe texting someone at the start of case flashed across Kara’s mind.

“We’re going to kill you mother fuckers!” A familiar voice screamed out as the bullets stopped. Kara risked peaking her head around to see Ammarah and 4 other Immortals busy reloading their weapons, all standing in a line.

Kara silently cussed to herself, realizing that she didn’t bring a gun with her. She knew that the court house wouldn’t let her take it inside, so she left it in its portable safe at Lena’s. She was just going to have to improvise.

The group of Immortals seemed to be talking amongst themselves as Kara struggled to think of a game plan. She looked to where Maggie and her sister were- there was no way either of them could run to the other. Lena looked panicked, meeting Kara’s gaze as she looked to her.

The sound of someone’s shoe shuffling against the torn up sidewalk close by drew Kara’s attention. Right as she turned she could the tip of a shoe appearing just around the corner of the planter box. In a berserker type of fighting style Kara decided to rush him.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Kara tackled the figure around the legs, the tall man falling to the ground with a surprised yell. Kara scrambled to grab the gun still in his hands, but when she looked up to see the rest of the group pointing their weapons at her, fingers on the trigger, she only had a second to react.

She grabbed the man by the front of the tactical shirt and yanked his torso up just enough to use as a sort of shield. The man had been too dazed- his head having hit the pavement –that he didn’t stop Kara. The Immortals had been too trigger happy to stop their bullets from firing in time.

Multiple quick shots reigned out before they realized that they were hitting their friend directly in the back and not Kara. The shots quickly stopped, Kara peaking around the human shield to shoulder the assault rifle and hip-fire at the closest Immortal.

She hit a young woman straight in the neck, watching her flail as she fell backwards from the momentum of her head snapping backwards at the shot. Realizing they were now under fire the 3 other Immortals scrambled.

Kara shot off a few more bullets before the already mostly-empty rifle ran out of ammo. She started to look down at the body of the Immortal woman as she walked carefully up to the car, but movement from behind the car caught her attention.

A young man that Kara didn’t recognize raised his gun over the hood of the SUV, but Kara could see his aim was wavering too much to her left to hit her. She was right, his bullets whistling past her as she continued to terminator-walk forward.

With the split second advantage of not getting hit, Kara took her empty gun and chucked it like a spear directly at the man’s face. It hit him in the forehead, blood spurting from a gash as he stumbled backwards. The kid didn’t fall, so Kara had to then use that surprise attack advantage to try and rush towards the fallen Immortal woman.

Kara just managed to get the gun off the ground when she heard movement to her left. She turned to see another young man turning to look at her, gun raised. He didn’t get to fire off a bullet, Maggie’s broad frame slamming into him.

The man slammed heavily into the SUV, his head smashing through the back passenger window. Kara heard someone give a war cry to her right, turning to see the man she had hit in the face rushing her with his gun raised like a club.

In a swift turn she hip-fired again, shooting the man three times in the chest. His momentum carried him forward, tripping over Kara and falling onto the other side of her. He landed next to his female Immortal buddy like a sack of potatoes.

Kara returned her attention to Maggie, who was struggling to grapple the gun from the still conscious Immortal man. Kara stood from her kneeling position, taking her gun and bashing the man in the side of the head with the butt of the gun.

The man fell to the ground heavily, Maggie looking surprised at the sudden aid. Kara turned and walked around the front of the car wordlessly. She had been looking high for Ammarah, so when she saw she was laying prone on the ground it surprised her.

Ammarah fired off 4 shots, 3 of them hitting Kara in the lower abdomen and ribs. Thank Christ she had remembered her Kevlar vest that day. Kara stumbled backwards at the heavy impact of the ribs, still feeling the pain of the bullets.

Now on the ground, dazed on her back, Kara couldn’t reach for her gun fast enough to shoot Ammarah as she rushed her with a large knife. Ammarah went to fall on top of Kara, knife pointed towards her face, but Kara was able to catch her and toss her backwards. It was the same move she used on Maggie while they had sparred at Maggie’s interview.

Ammarah went flying multiple feet, landing well above Kara’s head. Kara rolled onto her stomach and scrambled for the knife that landed between them. Ammarah had been quick to get up, so they both grabbed the hilt of the knife at the same time.

Kara could feel her former second-in-command try and push the weapon to strike her throat, but Kara was able to tilt the blade in their grasp so it only grazed the nape of her neck. She then used the close proximity to slam a knee into Ammarah’s ribs.

The smaller woman gagged at the sudden loss of air, instinctively loosening her grip on the knife. She fell to the side, Kara twisting the knife down and smacking the bottom of the hilt so the blade went straight into Ammarah’s heart.

Normally Kara would give her victim the professional courtesy of leaving the knife in the wound so that they wouldn’t bleed out too quickly, and might be able to get medical attention. This time, however, Kara didn’t hesitate to then draw the knife out of her enemy’s heart.

Crimson blood boiled out of the wound in thick waves. Ammarah looked shocked, realizing what was happening. Her eyes were wide as her chest heaved from the 10 second fight. Her eyes were darting all over Kara’s own panting face, a look of fear flashing through her eyes. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“I’m sorry,” Kara whispered through her deep breathing, guilt gripping her heart as she watched her failed student’s life slowly ebb out of her. Kara swallowed dryly as she moved to sit back on her legs, not standing until she was certain Ammarah was gone.

Lena’s voice broke through Kara’s hazy hearing. “Kara, are you okay?!” She had run up behind Kara and was checking her over. The 3 bullets that hit her vest were still lodged in the thick material and the deep cut on the nape of her neck was still dripping blood onto her coat and shirt.

Kara blinked away from Ammarah’s blank look, turning her attention to Lena. “I’m okay- are you? No one was hurt?” She stood on shaky legs, her adrenaline starting to ware off. “We’re all safe,” Alex spoke up, standing next to Maggie who was checking out the only person who was still alive.

The gun fight only lasted about 3 minutes, so it didn’t surprise Kara that the police officers in the court house only just then rushed out with their guns drawn. They drew up short, realizing they were late to the fight. One of them called for an all-clear on her radio.

Kara’s stomach hurt as she adjusted her button up shirt, glancing down at the holes in the light fabric. “I think one of you should go check Jack Sharpe’s cell phone to find your answer about who sent these people,” Kara said to one of the officers.

She was about to go follow them into the court room when Lena stopped her, grabbing her wrist. “We need to take you to the hospital to make sure you’re okay, Kara,” she pointed out with a stern arch of her eyebrow. Kara sighed, just wanting to go back inside to see the result of Lillian’s case.

Instead of fighting Lena, however, she accepted with a huff and a nod. Her stomach _did_ hurt, to be fair, and she _was_ still bleeding. There were the distant sounds of sirens getting closer that made Kara realize they had probably called an ambulance to deal with bodies.

She turned to her sister, who was awkwardly looking down at the bodies. She wasn’t used to such open violence, visibly bothered by the gore. “Will you be staying here?” Alex pulled her eyes away from the carnage, shaking her head.

“I’ll meet you guys at the hospital with Maggie. I’ll text Fink and tell him what happened.” As she finished speaking multiple ambulances pulled up to the scene. Kara was ushered over to one, Lena joining her as they assessed her neck. They had to take Kara to the hospital to make sure there weren’t any internal injuries from the impact of the bullets.

Kara watched the bloody scene get closed off as they closed the back ambulance doors, Alex and Maggie walking away to grab Alex’s car. The EMT moved around the back of the vehicle as he grabbed gauze to temporarily clean and bandage Kara’s neck before sitting down behind her to do paper work.

Lena had watched the man work the entire time, a worried look in her eyes. “Hey,” Kara mumbled to her lover, drawing her green eyes away from the bandages, “I’m okay. It’s just a scratch; you don’t have to worry.”

Of course Lena was still going to worry, but the words seemed to take away some of her anxiety. She smiled back at Kara, relaxing enough to close her eyes and lean her head back against the metal wall. Silence settled as Kara allowed herself to process all that had happened.

Ammarah had been tasked with attacking them, and probably killing Lena. Lillian must have decided that she wanted to punish her daughter regardless of what the outcome of the case was. Although Kara was certain this new show of character would put her in jail for life, considering Sharpe had documented evidence of the hit being ordered.

All of this would be over soon, Kara could feel it. She tried not to get her hopes up too much, but it was hard not to wish for the maximum number of years to be sentenced on that vile woman. She was already old, and there was no way she’d last in prison for very long. 

The ambulance pulled up to the hospital quickly, Kara being wheeled out despite her insistence on just walking. Lena was allowed to follow her up until she had to get a scan of her abdomen to make sure she had no internal injuries.

The scan didn’t take long, and by the time Kara was wheeled out Alex and Maggie had joined Lena in the waiting room. The doctors looked at the scans and concluded that Kara only had some internal bruising that would go away in a few weeks.

As a nurse was stitching up the long gash on Kara’s neck Eugene Fink showed up at the hospital. He politely asked Kara how she was feeling, glancing at the closing wound. “I’m okay. Is the court on break again?” There was no way they could have already reached the verdict… Right?

“No… I have some very good news, actually.” Fink paused to look to Lena, who had straightened in her chair. “Your evidence against your mother helped tremendously, so it wasn’t hard for the jury to believe that she attempted to have you and your friends killed.”

Kara was metaphorically on the edge of her seat as she waited for Fink to say what she was hoping was going to happen. “We went straight back to the trial after you guys left, foregoing the extra evidence Judge Ramos asked for. The jury asked to skip directly to choosing a verdict.”

Lena and Kara glanced at one another, the hope that Kara felt in her chest displayed openly on Lena’s features.

“All 12 jurors said guilty… She’s being charged with 4 cases of attempted murder, assault, lying under oath, failing to pay a citation, and first degree murder. Her sentence is 110 years with no chance of bail.”

All 4 women burst up out of their seats. Kara ignored the pain in her stomach as Lena jumped into her arms, holding her tight as she spun her lover around. Maggie and Alex were also hugging tightly, jumping up and down together.

It was over. Everything was finally _over_.

**********

“What do you mean you’re arranging a meeting with Xuan Yimu?!” Kara yelled, exasperated. Lena frowned up at her as she sat at her desk in L-Corp. Xuan Yimu was the leader of the Emerald Dragons; the man who had let one of his general’s capture and torture both Lena and Kara.

“There’s an age old rule that allows two mafias to parley with one another in order to reach a common goal… I have an idea in mind that I think he’d like to listen to,” Lena explained calmly. Kara couldn’t wrap her mind around why in the world Lena would want to try something as dangerous as that.

She tried to dispute Lena more, saying it was dangerous and there was nothing promising that Xuan Yimu would respect the parley. Lena, however, was dead set on her meeting. She didn’t budge an inch, saying that if Kara was so worried that she could just bring extra security.

Eventually Kara gave up, deciding to take Lena’s advice. She started to message all of the people in her security unit, making sure they all knew what was going to happen. Lena said that the meeting would be tomorrow in a warehouse that sat directly along the territory line between Immortal and Emerald Dragons.

Kara spent the rest of the day and next morning thinking up all sorts of plans on what to do just in case something went wrong. She tried giving Lena a spare Kevlar vest, but of course Lena denied it. “I’ll be safe, as long as I have you around,” was Lena’s reasoning. Although she did finish the sentence with a kiss, so Kara decided not to push.

As usual Kara drove, following Lena’s direction as they were followed behind by another car full of Kara’s security team. Maggie was of course part of that crew, driving the backup car. The abandoned warehouse was on a large plot of fenced of land along the city streets. It was tall and looming as Kara followed Lena’s direction into a hidden entrance.

The Emerald Dragons were already there as Kara drove through a wide bay door into the empty floor of the factory. She pulled her car up close, seeing that an old table with chairs had been set up for the parley to be held. An old man in a long coat was already sitting at the table.

Kara was the first to get out, opening the door for Lena as she scanned the small crowed of Emerald Dragons. They both had brought heavy security, but neither leader seemed too anxious or stressed as Lena moved to sit at the table.

“Mr. Yimu, thank you for responding to my parley,” Lena spoke confidently as she settled into her chair. There was a translator standing just in back of Xuan Yimu who turned Lena’s words into Chinese for the older man.

Xuan Yimu spoke as if he was speaking directly to Lena, but the translator is the one that Lena listened to. “We were very curious as to why you suddenly called this meeting. How is your mother?” Xuan had a sly smile on his face, but Lena’s didn’t falter from her confident CEO façade.

“I wouldn’t know; I haven’t talked to her in all this time.” The trial involving Lillian had been over a year and a half ago. Lena was in charge of the Immortals technically, although she was very distant and let her generals run it more than herself. It was the best way to keep her hands clean from all the criminal activity.

Yimu spoke again, Lena waiting for the translator to explain his words. “So why have you called this meeting? We’ve been co-existing very nicely ever since Lillian Luthor’s imprisonment.” Kara kept her eyes trained on the group across from the table, but she felt her own curiosity spike; Lena hadn’t explained to her why she was even calling the meeting, so she had no idea why they were here.

“I asked you here because I’d like to give you the Immortals and all our territory- with a few rules, of course,” Lena spoke casually, as if she wasn’t just offering her entire family legacy to their long time enemy.

Even Xuan Yimu looked surprised as his translator spoke to him. Both eyebrows shot high onto his forehead as he looked to Lena, who simply smiled. “What are the rules?” Yimu asked, his foreign words sounding intrigued.

“There’s only 3 terms I’d like for you to agree to; L-Corp and the surrounding 6 blocks are to be untouched from gang activity- think about it as neutral ground, just like this warehouse.” Lena gestured around herself, Yimu already starting to nod.

“Next, me and my body guard are to be left completely alone. Almost 2 years ago you tried to have me killed- twice –as well as my security. If you agree to this, you also agree to wiping away any hostilities between the Luthor and Yimu families.”

Kara realized where this was going; they had once talked about what would happen if Lena really did give away the Immortals. She didn’t actually think Lena would do it. “Lastly, any Immortal who wishes to join you will be accepted with open arms, and those who don’t will be left alone to go about their own lives.”

The translator took a moment to explain the terms to Yimu, but when she finished Xuan was silent for a long moment. He visibly thought about the 3 terms, stroking his chin. At first Kara thought he was going to have some things to say, but in the end he nodded.

“I agree on these terms, and will happily sign a contract saying so,” Xuan replied. Lena smiled wide, taking the mentioned contract that she had written up the day before out of the small folder she had been holding the entire time.

Both parties signed the multiple lines saying they agreed to the terms and conditions, the Emerald Dragons getting their copy while the Immortals got their own. Lena was the first to stand, Yimu taking a few extra seconds due to his aging body.

She held out her hand to the other mafia boss, thanking him for his cooperation. Xuan Yimu shook her hand vigorously, thanking her right back… And just like that, a century long rivalry was ended. Lena turned to her group of guards, motioning for them to return to the car.

Everyone piled in and drove off, the car silent for a long while. The further they drove, the more it settled into Kara’s stomach that the Immortals were no more. Lena was free from the stress of running an unwanted criminal legacy. She no longer had to deal with that burden, allowed to live her life as a true scientist and business owner.

Finally, Kara looked to Lena, who met her gaze while they were stopped at a light. Both of them were silent until they simultaneously started to laugh. There was nothing holding them back now. Lillian and the Immortals were no more.

Memories of the past almost 3 years flooded Kara’s mind as she laughed along with the love of her life. To think she was so afraid, so in denial about how she felt about Lena that she almost missed her opportunity to fall in love.

What would have happened if Kara hadn’t let herself feel these emotions for Lena? Would they still be stuck in an unhappy limbo of Kara repressing her emotions to remain ‘professional’ while Lena got pushed into a criminal life style?

Thinking about what could have been made Kara incredibly grateful to be where she was today; even with all the bad things that happened in the middle.

It felt so good knowing that Kara was able to fully be open about herself and Lena; nothing was holding them back from being truly happy. The world was theirs to explore, both of them looking forward to seeing where life brought them next.

As long as Lena and Kara were together, they were happy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How was that? Did I do well? I didn't know how to fully end it, but I'm content with where the story stops. I hope my readers are, too.  
> I want to say a special thank you to everyone who went through the journey of watching me write this story; it means literally so much to me when you guys comment and give me so much love and support.  
> The word document I wrote this story in says it's 360 pages... You guys literally read an entire book! That's so crazy!!! I'm so happy that whoever's reading this now has enjoyed my story enough to read that much of my writing. It give me such a strong drive to do what I love and write more.  
> I hope to be back soon with more Supercorp! I can't thank everyone who's made it to this point enough <3 <3 <3 <3
> 
> Till next time :D  
> -Aries


End file.
